January 16, 2026
By Babette De Naeyer Just before closing the books for the summer, the European Court of Human Rights (the Court) decided a novel and highly anticipated Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 (Article 3 P-1) case in Bradshaw a.o. v. the United Kingdom (22 July 2025), concerning disinformation and Russian election interference. The case had […]
January 13, 2026
By Maële Dumontet On 4 September 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) adopted a decision in the case E.A et Association européenne contre les violences faites aux femmes au travail v. France concerning the authorities’ failure to criminalise non-consensual sexual intercourse and conduct an effective investigation into the applicant’s allegations of rape. This […]
January 09, 2026
by dr Tobias Mortier It is no secret that Azerbaijan’s human rights record is not particularly exemplary. Human rights defenders and civil society activists are increasingly oppressed and silenced. Amnesty International reports that critical voices in Azerbaijan are often imprisoned as punishment on account of their views. In its case law, the European Court of […]
January 06, 2026
by Zelal Pelin Doğan When the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) finds that a Convention right has been violated, what does that finding ultimately secure for the individual concerned? Does it restore the applicant, as far as possible, to the position they would have occupied absent the violation, or does it increasingly function as […]
December 23, 2025
by Donatas Murauskas On 13 November 2025, the European Court of Human Rights delivered its judgment in A.R. v. Poland. The case concerned the Polish legal framework governing the prohibition of abortion on the ground of foetal abnormality, as well as the 2020 ruling of the Polish Constitutional Court, which effectively restricted access to abortion. […]
December 22, 2025
Dr. Jens T. Theilen *** Between the 12th and the 22nd of December, Strasbourg Observers is hosted a blog symposium entitled ‘The Role of the European Court of Human Rights: Progressive, Conservative, or Both?‘ This is the concluding post in the symposium. The introduction can be found here. In addition to this post from Jens T. Theilan, […]
December 19, 2025
By Dr. Betül Durmuş *** Between the 12th and the 22nd of December, Strasbourg Observers is hosting a blog symposium entitled ‘The Role of the European Court of Human Rights: Progressive, Conservative, or Both?‘ The introduction to the symposium can be found here. In addition to this post from Betül Durmuş, the symposium includes contributions from Corina Heri, Vera […]
December 18, 2025
by Harriet Ní Chinnéide and dr Tobias Mortier *** Between the 12th and the 22nd of December, Strasbourg Observers is hosting a blog symposium entitled ‘The Role of the European Court of Human Rights: Progressive, Conservative, or Both?‘ The introduction to the symposium can be found here. In addition to this post from Harriet Ní Chinnéide and […]
December 17, 2025
By Dr Esra Demir-Gürsel *** Between the 12th and the 22nd of December, Strasbourg Observers is hosting a blog symposium entitled ‘The Role of the European Court of Human Rights: Progressive, Conservative, or Both?‘ The introduction to the symposium can be found here. In addition to this post from Esra Demir-Gürsel, the symposium includes contributions from Corina […]
December 16, 2025
By Dr. Vera Wriedt *** Between the 12th and the 22nd of December, Strasbourg Observers is hosting a blog symposium entitled ‘The Role of the European Court of Human Rights: Progressive, Conservative, or Both?‘The introduction to the symposium can be found here. In addition to this post from Vera Wriendt, the symposium also includes contributions […]
December 15, 2025
By Dr Corina Heri *** Between the 12th and the 22nd of December, Strasbourg Observers is hosting a blog symposium entitled ‘The Role of the European Court of Human Rights: Progressive, Conservative, or Both?‘The introduction to the symposium can be found here. In addition to this post from Corina Heri, the symposium includes contributions from […]
December 12, 2025
By Dr Esra Demir-Gürsel *** Between the 12th and the 22nd of December, Strasbourg Observers is hosting a blog symposium entitled ‘The Role of the European Court of Human Rights: Progressive, Conservative, or Both?‘ This post introduces the symposium. It also includes posts from Corina Heri, Vera Wriendt, Esra Demir-Gürsel, Harriet Ní Chinnéide and Tobias […]
December 09, 2025
by Dr. Ufuk Yeşil Introduction: Remedying Violations and the Critical Role of the Retrial Mechanism The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), acting as the ultimate supranational authority monitoring whether member states fulfil their obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention), regards the effective implementation of its judgments within domestic law not […]
December 04, 2025
by Vandita Khanna After three recent judgments on racial profiling (analysed here and here), Seydi and Others v France has brought the issue back before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). On 26 June 2025, the Fifth Section found France to have violated Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) in conjunction with Article 8 (right […]
December 02, 2025
By Margarita S. Ilieva On 9 September 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (the Court), in Ilareva and Others v. Bulgaria for the first time applied the concept of discrimination by association to human rights defenders (HRDs) targeted by hate speech due to their activism. It found a procedural breach because of a stunted […]
November 27, 2025
Dr. Christian J. Tams From 2-4 December 2025, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe will meet to discuss compliance with ECtHR judgments. The agenda for the meeting is dense. States increasingly struggle to (or choose not to) ‘abide by the final judgment of the Court in any case in which they are […]
November 25, 2025
**As of September 2025, The Human Rights Research Group at KU Leuven has affiliated with the Human Rights Centre at Ghent University as partners of the Strasbourg Observers blog** Date Conference: 22 May 2026 Location: University of Leuven (Belgium) Conveners: Leuven Centre for Public Law – Human Rights Research Group Keynote speaker: Prof. Başak Çalı […]
November 21, 2025
By Dr. Dominika Bychawska-Siniarska In its recent case Mortensen v. Denmark, the ECtHR had yet another opportunity to assess whether calling someone a ‘Nazi’ falls within the boundaries of freedom of expression. Following earlier cases such as Lingens v. Austria, Brosa v. Germany and Balaskas v. Greece, the Court examined in detail whether such a […]
November 07, 2025
Dr. Corina Heri & Dr. Hazhar Jamali On 28 October 2025, a Chamber formation of the ECtHR issued its most recent climate judgment: Greenpeace Nordic and Others v. Norway. This highly anticipated ruling concerned the Norwegian authorities’ alleged failure to conduct an adequate environmental impact assessment before licensing oil and gas exploration on the Norwegian […]
November 04, 2025
By dr. Ľalík Tomáš On 4 September 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) adopted a decision in the case of Figeľ v. Slovakia. Ján Figeľ alleged a violation of his freedom of religion due to the absolute prohibition of public worship during the Covid-19 pandemic in Slovakia. The case concerns the protection of […]