The right to a fair trial guaranteed by Art. 6 ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights) is a fundamental principle of the rule of law. In particular, it requires States to offer a person who has been tried in his or her absence (this is known as
judgment by default
) the right to a new judgment in his presence.
But some countries do not guarantee such a right to a full retrial to those who have been convicted in absentia. In such cases, Switzerland will generally refuse extradition to such countries on the grounds that their procedure does not comply with the procedural principles laid down in the European Convention on Human Rights.
