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 […]
November 15, 2024
By Thibaut Lesseliers The recent Pindo Mulla v. Spain grand chamber judgement of the European Court of Human Rights (‘ECtHR’, ‘the Court’) concerns the judicial authorization of the administration of a blood transfusion to a Jehovah’s Witness in an emergency situation in spite of her formally and repeatedly expressed desire to, for religious reasons, under […]
May 24, 2024
by Thibaut Lesseliers In the case of Föderation der Aleviten Gemeinden in Österreich, the European Court of Human Rights (‘ECtHR’, ‘the Court’) ruled on the Article 9 (freedom of religion) and Article 6 § 1 (reasonable time aspect of right to fair trial) complaints brought by an Alevi cultural association following the refusal of the […]
May 08, 2024
by dr. Elien Verniers In February, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered a landmark judgment with significant animal welfare implications in Belgium and beyond in the case of Executief van de Moslims van België and Others v. Belgium. The ECtHR decided, in line with the previous judgment of the European Court of Justice […]
April 26, 2024
Harriet Ní Chinnéide & Dr. Cathérine Van de Graaf In Executief van de Moslims van België and others v Belgium the European Court of Human Rights (the ECtHR, the Court) assessed the compatibility of decrees adopted in Flanders and Wallonia banning the slaughter of animals without prior stunning, as practiced by observant Muslims and Jews […]
April 23, 2024
by dr. Cathérine Van de Graaf1 On 30 November, the Fifth Division of the European Court of Human Rights ruled in the case of Georgian Muslim Relations and Others v. Georgia. The Court ruled that Georgia had violated its positive obligations under Articles 8 and 9 of the Convention in conjunction with Article 14 as […]
April 05, 2024
Işıl Kurnaz Since around the mid-1800s, the term “conscientious objection” has been used to describe a refusal driven by an individual’s moral conscious to engage in military duties. Although the right to conscientious objection is not defined in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) – or indeed, in any UN instrument – it is […]