Social and economic rights are often referred to as " the rights of the poor" but one may wonder : even so, are they «poor rights » ? The present research focuses on the judicial answerability of social and economic rights. Although social and civil rights have been affirmed to be indivisible and interdependent, legal scholars often distinguish between the two. References are common to the so-called ‘ specific nature’ of the former and generally they support the idea according to which legal interferences with parliamentary social and economic policies would constitute a violation of the separation of powers. Additionally, the argument that courts are not competent to decide on such complex issues is also often put forth. However, the academic debate about judicial enforcement of social rights is undergoing changes. In growing numbers, national as well as international courts are starting to invalidate the classical point of view. The present article aims at presenting these new trends in case-law and argues that they can only be reinforced by the recently approved Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Therefore, it is contended here that significant steps are being made towards the efficiency of actual juridical remedies for the violation of economic and social rights.