Şahin v. Turkey
European Court of Human Rights
44 Eur. H.R. Rep. 99 (2005)
Leyla Şahin (plaintiff), a practicing Muslim medical student at Turkey's Bursa University, was denied admission to exams after continuing to wear an Islamic headscarf despite a new university regulation -- based on a Turkish Constitutional Court ruling requiring religiously neutral education -- banning head coverings in classes and exams. She left Turkey to finish her studies in Vienna and sued the Turkish government (defendant), arguing the ban violated her right to manifest her religion under Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which permits limitations only when prescribed by law, pursuing a legitimate aim, and necessary in a democratic society.
Whether, under Article 9 of the Convention, interferences with religious expression are permissible only if they are prescribed by law for the furtherance of a legitimate aim and are necessary in a democratic society.