Opening of the judicial year 2023
27/01/2023
The official opening of the judicial year of the ECHR took place on 27 January 2023. The event included a seminar on the topic Judges preserving democracy through the protection of human rights, at which many eminent figures from European judicial circles were present.
This was followed by the ceremony to mark the official opening of the judicial year 2023. Síofra O’Leary, President of the Court, and Silvana Sciarra, President of the Constitutional Court of Italy, addressed representatives from the highest courts of the 46 member States of the Council of Europe and from local, national and international authorities.
Speech by President Síofra O’Leary
Video of the Seminar: Original language - English - French
Video of the solemn hearing: Original language - English
Press Conference 2023
26/01/2023
President Síofra O’Leary held a press conference that was streamed live on Internet.
The President of the Court gave an overview of the Court’s activities in 2022 and presented the statistics for the past year. Accompanied by Marialena Tsirli, Registrar, she then took questions from journalists.
Webcast of the Press conference: English Original language
Speech by President O’Leary (in French only)
Annual Report 2022 Analysis of Statistics 2022
Due to the interruption of the international postal services to and from the Russian Federation and where the only means of delivery of the Court’s decisions and judgments to the applicants is by post, the Court has exceptionally decided to notify the applicants about decisions and judgments adopted by its Chamber and Committee judicial formations after 1 March 2022 in respect of applications against the Russian Federation only via its HUDOC database.
As announced in the Court’s press release of 29 August 2022, as from 1 September 2022 the Court has returned in some aspects to the normal processing of applications involving Ukraine. Due to the interruption of the international postal services to and from Ukraine, the Court will communicate with applicants via its electronic communication system, eComms. For that purpose, the Court will use the email address provided by the applicants. Regarding specifically the notification of decisions and judgments, where no email address has been provided the Court has exceptionally decided to notify the applicants about decisions and judgments adopted by its Chamber and Committee judicial formations only via its HUDOC database. Decisions adopted by the Single Judge will be notified only to those applicants who have provided an email address. Prior to contacting the Court about the state of the proceedings in a case, applicants are encouraged to consult the Court’s State of Proceedings search tool for further information.
Grand Chamber
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Decision concerning an inter-State case
27/01/2023
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.
Webcast of the hearing (26/01/2022)
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Judgment concerning Lithuania
23/01/2023
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
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Referral requests
23/01/2023On 30 January 2023 a panel of 5 judges will examine fourteen Grand Chamber referral requests.
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Hearings
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Grand Chamber hearing concerning Türkiye
18/01/2023
The Court held a Grand Chamber hearing in the case of Yalçınkaya v. Türkiye.
The case concerns the trial and conviction of the applicant for membership of the FETÖ/PDY. The trial took place in the aftermath of the attempted coup d’état of 15 July 2016.
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Elections
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Election of judges
24/01/2023
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has elected Oddný Mjöll Arnardóttir as judge to the Court in respect of Iceland and Anne Louise Haahr Bormann as judge to the Court in respect of Denmark.
More info about Oddný Mjöll Arnardóttir
More info about Anne Louise Haahr Bormann
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Official Visits
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Visit by the President of the Supreme Court of Ukraine
27/01/2023
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.
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Visit by the Vice-President of the Constitutional Court of Spain
27/01/2023
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.
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Visit by the Presidents of Constitutional Court and Court of Cassation of Armenia
26/01/2023
On 26 January 2023 Arman Dilanyan, President of the Constitutional Court of Armenia, and Lilit Tadevosyan, President of the Court of Cassation of Armenia, visited the Court and were received by President Síofra O’Leary. Armen Harutyunyan, judge elected in respect of Armenia, and Abel Campos, Deputy Registrar of the Court, also attended the meeting.
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Visit by the President of the Council of State of Türkiye
26/01/2023
On 26 January 2023 Zeki Yiğit, President of the Council of State of Türkiye, visited the Court and was received by President Síofra O’Leary. Saadet Yüksel, judge elected in respect of Türkiye, and Marialena Tsirli, Registrar of the Court, also attended the meeting.
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Visit by the President of the Senate of the Netherlands
26/01/2023
On 26 January 2023 Jan Anthonie Bruijn, President of the Senate of the Netherlands, visited the Court and was received by President Síofra O’Leary. Jolien Schukking, judge elected in respect of the Netherlands, and Abel Campos, Deputy Registrar of the Court, also attended the meeting.
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Visit by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany
24/01/2023
On 24 January 2023 Annalena Baerbock, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany, visited the Court and was received by President Síofra O’Leary. Anja Seibert-Fohr, judge elected in respect of Germany, and Marialena Tsirli, Registrar of the Court, also attended the meeting.
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Chamber
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Judgment concerning Georgia
19/01/2023In the case of Machalikashvili and Others v. Georgia the Court held that there had been a violation of the procedural aspect and no violation of the substantive aspect of the right to life.
The case concerned an anti-terrorism operation carried out in Georgia by the State Security Service. Following one of the arrests, the applicants’ relative died in hospital, having been shot while allegedly trying to detonate a grenade during his arrest.
The Court found that the authorities had failed to comply with the requirements of an effective and thorough investigation. However, it considered that there was insufficient evidence to conclude, beyond reasonable doubt, that the applicants’ relative had died in circumstances engaging the responsibility of the State.
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Judgment concerning France
19/01/2023
In the case of Pagerie v. France the Court held that there had been no violation of the freedom of movement.
The case concerned a series of curfew orders issued in respect of the applicant under the state of emergency declared in France after the attacks of 13 November 2015 and the individual administrative control and monitoring orders to which he was subsequently made subject.
Webcast of the hearing (18/10/2022)
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