Croatian jurist Ksenija Turkovic has been elected a Vice-President of the European Court of Human Rights, the Strasbourg-based court has said on its website.

Turkovic will take office on May 18.

A criminal law professor at the Zagreb School of Law, Turkovic was elected a judge of the European Court of Human Rights in October 2012.

The number of judges of the European Court of Human Rights is equal to the number of contracting states to the European Convention on Human Rights. Judges perform their duties in an individual capacity and do not represent any country, and they are elected for a non-renewable nine-year term.