| Abstract: | Even though Ethiopia acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (the
CRC) about eight months after it entered into force, the Federal Supreme Court
(FSC) Cassations Bench took a long time to cite provisions from the CRC in its
decisions. The Supreme Court has recently started citing provisions from the CRC
to substantiate its binding interpretation and decisions. In its cassation division, the
Ethiopian Supreme Court is mandated to render binding interpretation of legal
provisions as stipulated under Article 10(2) of the Federal Courts Proclamation
No. 1234/2013. So far, the Federal Supreme Court has published 25 volumes on
different subject matters including family, criminal, civil, labour, and tort cases.
This article explores the influence of CRC provisions in interpreting children’s
rights before the Supreme Court’s cassation division. Moreover, this article
assesses the attention given to CRC’s provisions in the Supreme Court’s binding
interpretation process and decisions. The article also notes the significance of
binding interpretations of child rights in light of their contribution to the
development of the scope of legal protection bestowed toward children's rights
domestically. |
