Has the European Court of Human Rights become a ‘small claims tribunal’ and why, if at all, does it matter?

After nearly two decades, the case overload afflicting the European Court of Human Rights has finally been reduced to more manageable proportions. However, it is too early to tell if this welcome trend will be sustained. But, if it is, the authors of this article argue, it will have been achieved at considerable cost because, in the attempt to defend it, the cherished right of individual petition has, paradoxically, been undermined. They also claim that the Court has been confirmed as a ‘human rights small claims tribunal’, that structural violations are now more likely to be institutionalized than resolved, and that a golden opportunity to improve the protection of human rights across the continent has been missed.