Nancy Hernández López

Nancy Julieta Hernández López (born 1963) is a Costa Rican lawyer, professor, judge, and current member of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights with respect to Costa Rica since 2022 and was its president between 2024 and 2025. She previously served as judge of the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice of Costa Rica between 2013 and 2021.

Early life and education Born on 28 October 1963, Hernández grew up in the neighbourhood of Holanda, in San José, Costa Rica. As a child and teenager, she was an athlete, especially taking up swimming, where she played with the national team and became one of the country's best in the 50- and 100-metre breaststroke events and won the gold medal in the 100-metre breaststroke at the first Central American Games in the 1970s. In 2024, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Brazilian Institute of Education, Development and Research (IDP).

She has held various posts relating to the promotion of human rights, including as a member of the National AIDS Commission (1990–1992), a consultant to the Pan American Health Organisation on HIV/AIDS in prisons (1998), co-founder and vice-president of the Costa Rican Association of Constitutional Law, member of the Commission on International Humanitarian Law representing the Judiciary, representative of the Constitutional Chamber before the Venice Commission (2020) and member of the editorial board of the Yearbook of Latin American Constitutional Law (2021). She received 16 votes from the member states of the Organisation of American States. Between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2025 she served as its president.

In April 2025 she met with Venezuelan exiled oppositor Edmundo González.

Persona life She has two sisters. She is married and has a son.