Core content of fundamental rights

The core content doctrine marks the absolute limit of permissible restrictions on fundamental rights. Swiss constitutional law allows many rights to be limited if there is a legal basis, public interest and proportionality, but their essence must remain intact. The core varies by right: it may protect human dignity, minimal procedural guarantees, the essence of property, or basic freedom from state coercion. Identifying it is context-sensitive and usually narrow. A measure that destroys the practical existence of a right cannot be justified by ordinary balancing.