Protecting Human Rights: An Examination of Judicial Independence and Treaty Compliance

States agree to many human rights protections through treaty ratification. Often, however, states do not comply with the treaties they have ratified and human rights are abused. This study focuses on the role of the judiciary in holding the state accountable to their obligations under human rights treaties. Specifically, examining whether having an independent judiciary positively correlates with being compliant with human rights treaties. This is done through an exploratory case study of Brazil, which examines both its general court system and its military court system. While the general court system is very indepedent, the military court system is not. This clearly affects human rights practices in the area of physical integrity rights, leaving Brazil noncompliant with many human rights treaties