25
Aug
2026
A Court Open to All: Registration for the 4 September guided tour now open
On 4 September 2026 at 2.30 p.m. the Court will open its doors to the general public* to visit the Human Rights Building, its seat in Strasbourg, as part of the A Court Open to All initiative, which will offer members of the public the opportunity to discover the Human Rights Building in the afternoon of the first Friday of each month. The project aims to make the Court more accessible to the people it serves.
During this guided tour, which will be available in either English or French and will last approximately one hour, visitors will discover the main public areas of the Human Rights Building and learn more about the Court’s history, functioning and role in protecting human rights across Europe. They will also learn about the building itself, through exhibitions and presentations.
Mandatory registration for the 4 September visit will be open from 8 August until 1 September at 5.30 p.m. (CET) via this form.
The form must be completed by every visitor aged 18 or over. Minors accompanying an adult must also be mentioned in the registration form by the adult responsible for them.
As the number of places is limited, registration forms will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis.
* The guided tour is intended for the general public
Kavala v. Türkiye (no. 2)
Forthcoming Grand Chamber ruling
The Court will be delivering a Grand Chamber ruling in the case of Kavala v. Türkiye (no. 2) on 25 August 2026.
The case concerns the applicant’s detention after the judgment delivered by the ECHR in 2019 and the ensuing criminal proceedings in which he was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment.
- Press release
- Webcast of the hearing (25/03/2026)
- Country profile: Türkiye
Jesus Pinhal v. Portugal
Need for fair balance between combating crime and right not to be tried twice for the same offence: Court finds no violation in case where applicant prosecuted in several sets of proceedings.
In the case of Jesus Pinhal v. Portugal the Court held that there had been no violation of the right not to be tried or punished twice.
The case concerned the right not to be tried or punished twice and known as the “ne bis in idem” principle.
The applicant had been a member and Vice-Chairman of the Banco Comercial Português bank (“the BCP”). Following a complaint, the Lisbon public prosecutor’s office, the Securities Market Commission (CMVM) and the Portuguese central bank (BdP) initiated proceedings against him for various criminal and administrative offences. Before the Court, the applicant argued that he had been tried three times for the same acts. The Court used this occasion to clarify the criteria to be applied in striking a fair balance between ensuring that all forms of crime were punished effectively and respect for the fundamental right not to be tried twice for the same acts.
Grande Oriente d’Italia v. Italy
Lack of sufficient safeguards in respect of a search and seizure measure ordered by Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry on combating the Mafia.
In the case of Grande Oriente d’Italia v. Italy the Court held that there had been a violation of the right to respect for the home.
The case concerned a search – ordered by a parliamentary commission of inquiry investigating the infiltration of mafia-type criminal organisations into Masonic lodges – of an Italian Masonic association’s premises, and the subsequent seizure of numerous paper and digital documents, in particular lists containing the names and personal data of more than six thousand individuals.
Having pointed out the discretion enjoyed by the States in the area of parliamentary autonomy, the Court found, however, that the interference with the applicant association’s right to respect for its home had not been accompanied by sufficient safeguards against abuse and arbitrariness, and had therefore not been “necessary in a democratic society”, since it had not had available to it any ex ante guarantee or ex post remedy.
A Court Open to All: Registration for the 4 September guided tour now open
On 4 September 2026 at 2.30 p.m. the Court will open its doors to the general public* to visit the Human Rights Building, its seat in Strasbourg, as part of the A Court Open to All initiative, which will offer members of the public the opportunity to discover the Human Rights Building in the afternoon of the first Friday of each month. The project aims to make the Court more accessible to the people it serves.
During this guided tour, which will be available in either English or French and will last approximately one hour, visitors will discover the main public areas of the Human Rights Building and learn more about the Court’s history, functioning and role in protecting human rights across Europe. They will also learn about the building itself, through exhibitions and presentations.
Mandatory registration for the 4 September visit will be open from 8 August until 1 September at 5.30 p.m. (CET) via this form.
The form must be completed by every visitor aged 18 or over. Minors accompanying an adult must also be mentioned in the registration form by the adult responsible for them.
As the number of places is limited, registration forms will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis.
* The guided tour is intended for the general public
Kavala v. Türkiye (no. 2)
Forthcoming Grand Chamber ruling
The Court will be delivering a Grand Chamber ruling in the case of Kavala v. Türkiye (no. 2) on 25 August 2026.
The case concerns the applicant’s detention after the judgment delivered by the ECHR in 2019 and the ensuing criminal proceedings in which he was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment.
- Press release
- Webcast of the hearing (25/03/2026)
- Country profile: Türkiye
Judicial activities
03/08/26
Measures under Rule 39 of the Rules of Court are decided in connection with proceedings before the Court, without prejudging any subsequent decisions on the admissibility or merits of the case.
29/07/26
Forthcoming Grand Chamber ruling
The Court will be delivering a Grand Chamber ruling in the case of Kavala v. Türkiye (no. 2) on 25 August 2026.
The case concerns the applicant’s detention after the judgment delivered by the ECHR in 2019 and the ensuing criminal proceedings in which he was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment.
- Press release
- Webcast of the hearing (25/03/2026)
- Country profile: Türkiye
20/07/26
Swiss authorities’ overly formalistic approach to complaints about lack of access to vegan diet while in detention breached European Convention.
In the case of G.K. and A.S. v. Switzerland the Court held that there had been violations of the right to freedom of thought and conscience and of the right to an effective remedy. The case concerned the failure to provide the applicants with a vegan diet while they had been in the care of the State. The first applicant had been in pre-trial detention, while the second had been confined in a psychiatric hospital. Despite making requests, the applicants did not receive entirely vegan diets. However, no formal administrative “decisions” had been taken which could have been appealed against under national law and which would have enabled the Swiss courts to examine the merits of their complaints.
The Court found that the Swiss authorities’ reaction to the applicants’ case had been overly formalistic. As a result, the legal avenues the applicants had used were ineffective in practice. It also meant that the applicants’ complaints regarding access to a vegan diet, in keeping with their ethical beliefs, while in the care of the authorities, had never been examined at national level.
16/07/26
Death of Roma man following use of prone position by police – failure by authorities to protect life and effectively investigate use of force and potential discriminatory motives.
In the case of S.T. v. the Czech Republic the Court held that there had been several violations of the Convention.
The case concerned the applicant’s complaints about the use of force against her brother, a Roma man who died in 2021 following a police intervention, and the investigation into the actions of the police officers involved.
16/07/26
No legal basis for Russian authorities to deprive applicants of their ownership of plots of land in Sevastopol.
In the case of Bazhenov and Others v. Russia and Ukraine, the Court held that there had been several violations of the Convention.
The case concerned the Russian authorities’ cancellation of the applicants’ titles to plots of land in Sevastopol, Crimea between 2015-2017. The plots had originally been transferred into private ownership by the Ukrainian authorities. The Russian authorities reclaimed them as public property on the basis that they were forest lands and as such should have never been privatised.
10/07/26
European Court decides to hold a hearing on Ukrainian children from Crimean childcare institutions officially unaccounted for since 2014.
The ECHR has decided to hold a hearing on 22 September 2026 in the case Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union on behalf of ten Ukrainian children v. Russia.
The case concerns ten Ukrainian children who were living in childcare institutions in Crimea in 2014 when Russia asserted jurisdiction over the peninsula. According to the association (UHHRU) acting on their behalf, Russian nationality was imposed on the children and they were put up for adoption and may have been adopted. There has been no information on their whereabouts since 2014, despite the Ukrainian authorities’ repeated requests. UHHRU allege that this effectively amounts to the children’s enforced disappearance.
Press releases on other judgments and decisions
23/07/26
Transparency and outreach
On the agenda
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