BiH Constitutional Court rejects Dodik’s appeal, confirms loss of RS Presidency mandate

With this decision, the legal process in Bosnia and Herzegovina has effectively reached its conclusion. Dodik may still file a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg, although the Court has previously stated in several similar cases that it does not have jurisdiction over decisions imposed by the Office of the High Representative (OHR), which it considers a UN body.

The State Court of BiH sentenced Milorad Dodik to one year in prison and imposed a six-year ban on holding public office for failing to comply with decisions issued by the High Representative in BiH, Christian Schmidt.

To pursue legal remedies before the Strasbourg court, Dodik’s defence team first had to submit an appeal to the Constitutional Court of BiH - a formal requirement before accessing the European Court of Human Rights.

In addition to challenging the criminal verdict, Dodik’s lawyers also filed a separate appeal to the Constitutional Court contesting the CIK decision that removed him from office and called early elections in the RS.

While Dodik can still appeal to the ECHR, legal experts say that the outcome is unlikely to change the enforcement of domestic rulings. Previous Strasbourg cases have made clear that decisions tied to the OHR fall outside the Court’s jurisdiction.

Early elections for the presidency of RS are now expected to proceed as scheduled, marking the first time in post-Dayton BiH history that a sitting entity president has been removed from office through a combination of judicial and administrative rulings.