Claude Reyes v. Chile

Marcel Claude Reyes, an economist (plaintiff), and two others requested information from Chile’s Foreign Investment Committee (FIC). Claude Reyes wanted to know about the foreign investor who was funding the Río Condor Project, a deforestation project. Claude Reyes was concerned about compliance with environmental regulations and reports that the project involved cutting down indigenous forests. The FIC did not convey all of the requested information or explain any omissions. Claude Reyes filed several actions in the Chilean courts, all of which were rejected. Claude Reyes then brought the case to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (the commission). Claude Reyes argued that the failure to provide all of the requested information constituted a violation of Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights (the convention), and the rejections in court constituted a violation of Article 25 of the convention. Chile (defendant) argued that the nondisclosure was within the FIC’s confidentiality policy regarding third-party information. The commission found that Chile violated Article 13 and Article 25 of the convention in failing to disclose the information to Claude Reyes and not granting access to the domestic justice system. Among the commission’s findings was that Article 13 must be read broadly, imposing a positive obligation on states to provide access to state-held information. Chile’s laws did not guarantee effective and broad access to public information and instead established exceptions that allowed public officials a great deal of discretion. The commission submitted the application to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.