On 21 October 2026, the President of the Court, Mattias Guyomar, addressed the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers as part of his regular twice-yearly exchange of views, providing an in-depth overview of the Court’s work over the past six months, with a particular focus on the priorities of his Presidency: efficiency, visibility and responsibility.

On efficiency, the President presented an overview of the Court’s judicial activity, supported by statistical data, and described the initiatives undertaken by the Court to improve its working methods and procedures.

On visibility, President Guyomar highlighted three key dimensions: communication and cooperation within the Council of Europe; engagement with national authorities, international organisations and other partners of the Court; and outreach and communication activities aimed at both the media and the general public.

On responsibility, he noted that accountability and judicial independence go hand in hand, and highlighted the importance of shared responsibility with national authorities in implementing the European Convention.

At the conclusion of his address, the President participated in an exchange of views with the Committee of Ministers and responded to questions from its members.

• Speech by President Mattias Guyomar

On 15 October 2026, the President of the Court, Mattias Guyomar, and the judge elected in respect of the Netherlands, Corinna Wissels, spoke at the 4^th edition of the “Day of Law” in The Hague. The event, dedicated to the theme The Protection of Minorities through the Law, was organised by the Embassy of France to the Netherlands.

In his intervention, President Guyomar stressed that the rule of law is indispensable to the protection of minorities.

Highlighting the Court’s case-law in this area, the President of the Court underlined that the Convention and the Court ensure that the law applies equally to everyone, by preventing the arbitrary exercise of governmental power and by providing independent courts capable of protecting the rights of different minorities.

Judge Wissels contributed to a panel discussion on The Current State of the Protection of Minorities through Law: European, International and National Mechanisms. Her intervention focused on the Court’s case-law and on the interaction between its jurisprudence, Council of Europe instruments, including the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, and the work of national courts in safeguarding the rights of minorities.

On 15 October 2026, the President of the Court, Mattias Guyomar, visited the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, where he met with its President, Judge Tomoko Akane. The meeting provided an opportunity for President Guyomar to express in person and on behalf of the Court judicial solidarity with the ICC at a time when it has been subject to sanction as an institution, and certain judges and prosecutors have been designated.

President Guyomar stressed the importance of standing with judges who face attacks and pressure because of their judicial work.

The President underlined that such attacks strike at the very foundations of the international legal order adding that peace should be defended through law and justice.

From 8 to 9 October 2026, Mattias Guyomar, the President of the Court, Gilberto Felici, the judge elected in respect of San Marino and Abel Campos, Deputy Registrar of the Court, visited Italy.

While there, they participated in a conference held at the University of Padua entitled The ECHR from the inside: the experience of the Judges and the Registry and took part in an exchange of views with the Venice Commission, chaired by Marta Cartabia, on the subject of access to justice. The President also delivered an address, as guest of honour, at the opening of the 148^th Plenary Session of the Venice Commission.

In that address, on 9 October, the President emphasised that exchanges between the two institutions enriched their respective work and fostered a process of “cross-fertilisation”.

“While the Venice Commission and the Court each have their own role and place, they share a common mission: to ensure that democracy, the rule of law and human rights are practical, effective and dynamic principles that benefit all. Our actions are complementary and guided by our shared values,” the President stated.

On 8 October, he also took part in the Crossed Perspectives on Access to Justice: Dialogue between the President of the European Court of Human Rights and the Venice Commission event in Venice, during which he highlighted the Court’s recent case-law that illustrated each of the criteria in the Venice Commission’s 2025 Updated Rule of Law Checklist.

During the same event, the Deputy Registrar delivered opening remarks, and Judge Felici spoke about the issue of the protection of lawyers and the relationship between lawyers and judges.

On the morning of 8 October, at the The ECHR from the inside: the experience of the Judges and the Registry conference at the University of Padua, the President, Judge Felici and the Deputy Registrar addressed the following topics, respectively: the way in which the Court applies and interprets the Convention in the light of present-day conditions in accordance with the living-instrument doctrine, the role of the national judge at the Court, and the cooperation between judges and the Registry in the processing of applications.

On 6 and 7 October 2026, the President of the Court, Mattias Guyomar, accompanied by the judge elected in respect of Portugal, Ana Maria Guerra Martins, participated in a summit on Judges, climate litigation and human rights in Vatican City, which brought together judges from national superior courts around the world, as well as from international courts.

In his intervention, President Guyomar provided a comparative analysis of the climate-related case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, the International Court of Justice and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. He noted that the Court had developed its case-law on climate change within a framework of shared responsibility, drawing on scientific, political and judicial consensus, and highlighted the convergence of judicial approaches that has emerged following the 2024 rulings, namely the cases of Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz and Others v. Switzerland, Duarte Agostinho and Others v. Portugal and 32 Others, and Carême v. France.

He further stressed that climate change and environmental degradation directly affect the enjoyment of human rights, including those of vulnerable groups, and noted that the convergence of judicial approaches around the world demonstrates that this global challenge knows no borders, affects everyone, and requires joint action for the protection of future generations.
 

On 2 October 2026, the President of the Court, Mattias Guyomar, and the Vice-President of the Court and judge elected in respect of Montenegro, Ivana Jelić, participated in the international conference On the Constitution, State, and Democracy, held in Tivat, Montenegro.

In his keynote address to participants, including presidents and judges from constitutional courts across Europe and representatives of the two European courts, President Guyomar focused on the common, universal values at the heart of the two European projects: the Council of Europe and the European Union.

“Both put the human being at the heart of the system of protection – by enshrining individual rights, by obliging States to uphold them, and by subjecting them to collective enforcement. And both look towards a shared and ‘peaceful future’ based on fundamental rights and freedoms which are ‘the foundation of justice and peace in the world’. This is more important than ever with an active war within Europe’s borders. A war that is getting ever closer,” said the Court President.

President Guyomar also highlighted that these two European projects are developed hand in hand with national apex courts.

“Together with domestic judiciaries and in full respect of the principles of subsidiarity and shared responsibility, the Strasbourg Court continues to ensure, as ‘a Court for all’, the effective protection of the human rights of hundreds of millions of individuals across Europe.”

Following the opening remarks, three panel discussions took place. Vice-President Jelić moderated a panel on “Amendments to the Constitution in the Function of European Integration: Legal Implications and Challenges of the Transfer of Sovereignty to the European Union”, while President Guyomar moderated a panel on “The Use of AI Tools in Constitutional Adjudication: Support or Threat to Constitutional Court Independence – Perspectives, Risks, and Ethical Dilemmas”.