ABSTRACT
This chapter considers more precisely how to assess whether rights have been violated and how conflicts between rights should be addressed. At times in ECHR and English law, too much emphasis has been placed on considering whether there has been an interference with the right, rather than whether the state can demonstrate that they have suitable justification for acting in the way they did. If justification is so important, a general right to autonomy raises the question of how broadly human rights should be interpreted. Webber is concerned that under a two-step process the word 'right' is used in two ways: as a prima facie right and as an actual right to act in a particular way. Since society contains a multitude of religious and moral beliefs and practices, people will constantly be faced with practices with which they disagree and will in a myriad of ways be constrained from creating their ideal society.
