On 30 January 2023, the Grand Chamber panel of five judges decided to reject all 14 requests for referral to the Grand Chamber.

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Cases pending before the Grand Chamber

In the inter-State case of Ukraine and the Netherlands v. Russia the Court has declared the applications partly admissible.

The case concerns events in eastern Ukraine, including the downing of Flight MH17.

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Delivery of the decision

Webcast of the hearing (26/01/2022)

Questions and Answers on Inter-State applications

Inter-State applications

In the case of Macatė v. Lithuania the Court held that there had been a violation of the freedom of expression.

This case concerned a book for nine-ten-year-olds written by an openly lesbian children’s author containing six stories based on traditional fairy tales but including characters from marginalised social groups and topics such as emigration and bullying. Two of the six fairy tales contain story lines of romantic relationships and marriages between persons of the same sex. Following a recommendation issued by the Inspectorate of Journalistic Ethics, the book was labelled by the publisher as possibly harmful to children under 14 years of age. The applicant, author of the book, died but her mother continued the proceedings before the ECHR in her place.

Press release Delivery of judgment

Webcast of the hearing (23/03/2022) Country profile: Lithuania Factsheet: Sexual Orientation

In the case of Y v. France the Court held that there had been no violation of the right to respect for private and family life.

The applicant in this case, a biologically intersex person, complained about the domestic courts’ refusal to grant his request to have the word “neutral” or “intersex” entered on his birth certificate instead of “male”.

The Court held that, having regard to the discretion (“margin of appreciation”) enjoyed by the respondent State, France had not failed in its positive obligation to secure effective respect for the applicant’s private life.

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Factsheet: Gender Identity

In the case of Kreyndlin and Others v. Russia the Court held that there had been a violation of the prohibition on inhuman or degrading treatment taken in conjunction with the prohibition of discrimination.

The case concerned a violent attack on Greenpeace workers in Krasnodar Region, which had potentially been prompted by their connection to Greenpeace or by the assumption they were foreign agents, and the subsequent investigation. The Court found that the investigation had been inadequate and incapable of deterring similar incidents, in particular as a full investigation had only been opened four years later, and it had failed to examine the potential hate motive behind the attack. The State had failed to comply with its obligation to furnish the necessary facilities for the examination of a case.

Press release

On 27 January 2023 Vsevolod Kniaziev, President of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, visited the Court and was received by President Síofra O’Leary. Mykola Gnatovskyy, judge elected in respect of Ukraine, and Marialena Tsirli, Registrar of the Court, also attended the meeting.

On 27 January 2023 Inmaculada Montalbán Huertas, Vice-President of the Constitutional Court of Spain, visited the Court and was received by President Síofra O’Leary. María Elósegui, judge elected in respect of Spain, and Abel Campos, Deputy Registrar of the Court, also attended the meeting.