Razonamiento Probabilístico de la Corte Interamericana para Probar Violaciones Ocurridas en un Contexto de Atropellos Masivos (Inter-American Court's Probabilistic Reasoning for Proving Violations Occurred within a Context of Widespread Abuses)

Abstract

This paper analyzes a kind of argumentation used by the Inter-American Court, which could be called “probabilistic reasoning.” This kind of reasoning has been previously identified by other scholars (even though it has not been given a particular name). The novelty of this paper does not lie on the description of this concept, but in the analysis of its nature and the systematic analysis of it. Among other things, this article refers to the way how this reasoning operates in relation to the burden and standard of proof. When doing so, this manuscript gives some suggestions that the Court should bear in mind when applying this kind of reasoning.

Note: Downloadable document is in Spanish.

Keywords: Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Evaluation of Evidence, Probabilistic Reasoning, Burden of Proof, Standard of Proof