02
Jul
2026
Meeting with representatives with United Nations Treaty bodies
On 30 June 2026, the Court hosted a meeting of judges with representatives with United Nations human rights treaty bodies. The meeting, organised with the support of the René Cassin Foundation and the French National Institute of Public Service (INSP), followed a symposium organised on the previous day to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of former Court President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, René Cassin.
During the meeting, the Court’s judges and the chairs and representatives of the UN Treaty Bodies exchanged views on various human rights issues and respective jurisprudential developments. The forward-looking discussions focused on identifying avenues for closer engagement and the use of jurisprudence, recommendations, and expertise, for a more coherent and effective human rights protection.
Noting that the United Nations is a key partner of the Court, President Mattias Guyomar said that the meeting was an opportunity to nourish dialogue and emphasised that the Court often referred to the case law of the UN Treaty Bodies in its judgments.
Changrok Soh, Chair of the UN Human Rights Committee and Chair of the 38th Meeting of Chairs of the UN Treaty Bodies, also addressed the participants online. His intervention was followed by a working session chaired by the Vice President of the Court and judge elected in respect of Montenegro, Ivana Jelić, on issues relating to the functioning, challenges, and cooperation between institutions. The session featured contributions from Vasilka Sancin, judge elected in respect of Slovenia, and Hélène Tigroudja, Vice Chair of the Human Rights Committee, whose interventions centred on coordination and cooperation between the UN Treaty Bodies and the Court, as well as practical proposals for future action.
The second working session, chaired by Anja Seibert Fohr, judge elected in respect of Germany, focused on the topic of non discrimination in times of disruption and uncertainty. Mykola Gnatovskyy, judge elected in respect of Ukraine, and Tina Stavrinaki, member of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and Chair of the Working Group on Individual Complaints, spoke about how the non discrimination standards set out by the UN and those developed by the Court in its case law under the Convention apply to today’s realities, including in the context of emerging technologies, climate change, and armed conflict.
Emmanuel Decaux, President of the René Cassin Foundation, delivered the closing remarks, highlighting the Foundation’s commitment to human rights protection in line with René Cassin’s legacy: fostering dialogue between institutions, bringing protection systems closer together, and working towards ever more effective guarantees of fundamental rights.
Grand Chamber judgment concerning Estonia
In the case of Vainik and Others v. Estonia the Court decided to strike the applications out of its list of cases.
The case concerned the total ban on tobacco in Estonian prisons from October 2017. The three applicants in the case, prisoners at the time, complained that they could not smoke, which had led to them suffering from withdrawal symptoms.
The Court considered that it was no longer necessary to examine the application as the applicant had died and no heirs had come forward. The other two applicants were no longer affected by the ban because they had since been released and had, in any event, failed to respond to the Court’s attempts to contact them.
H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco holds audience with President of the Court
On 25 June 2025 H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco held an audience in the Prince’s Palace with the President of the European Court of Human Rights, Mattias Guyomar. Also in attendance were the judge elected in respect of Monaco, Sébastien Biancheri, and the Registrar of the Court, Marialena Tsirli.
The discussions focused on Monaco’s priorities for its current presidency of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers, in particular enhancing democratic resilience, combating financial crime and supporting young people.
The President also briefed H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco on the Court’s achievements under its own three priorities: efficiency, visibility and accountability. The President thanked Monaco for its unwavering support and its active commitment to the Convention system and the Court.
Court President received by President Macron at the Élysée Palace
On 23 June 2026, the President of the Republic of France, Emmanuel Macron, received the President of the European Court of Human Rights, Mattias Guyomar, at the Élysée Palace. The Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe, Mr Pap Ndiaye, and the Registrar of the Court, Marialena Tsirli, also attended the meeting.
The discussions focused on the process leading to the Chișinău Declaration, the Court’s role in holding Russia accountable for its full scale invasion of Ukraine, rule of law backsliding, the EU’s accession to the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as the cases dealt with by the Court concerning France. President Macron reaffirmed France’s firm political support for the crucial work of the Court, an institution which was needed now more than ever.
Meeting with representatives with United Nations Treaty bodies
On 30 June 2026, the Court hosted a meeting of judges with representatives with United Nations human rights treaty bodies. The meeting, organised with the support of the René Cassin Foundation and the French National Institute of Public Service (INSP), followed a symposium organised on the previous day to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of former Court President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, René Cassin.
During the meeting, the Court’s judges and the chairs and representatives of the UN Treaty Bodies exchanged views on various human rights issues and respective jurisprudential developments. The forward-looking discussions focused on identifying avenues for closer engagement and the use of jurisprudence, recommendations, and expertise, for a more coherent and effective human rights protection.
Noting that the United Nations is a key partner of the Court, President Mattias Guyomar said that the meeting was an opportunity to nourish dialogue and emphasised that the Court often referred to the case law of the UN Treaty Bodies in its judgments.
Changrok Soh, Chair of the UN Human Rights Committee and Chair of the 38th Meeting of Chairs of the UN Treaty Bodies, also addressed the participants online. His intervention was followed by a working session chaired by the Vice President of the Court and judge elected in respect of Montenegro, Ivana Jelić, on issues relating to the functioning, challenges, and cooperation between institutions. The session featured contributions from Vasilka Sancin, judge elected in respect of Slovenia, and Hélène Tigroudja, Vice Chair of the Human Rights Committee, whose interventions centred on coordination and cooperation between the UN Treaty Bodies and the Court, as well as practical proposals for future action.
The second working session, chaired by Anja Seibert Fohr, judge elected in respect of Germany, focused on the topic of non discrimination in times of disruption and uncertainty. Mykola Gnatovskyy, judge elected in respect of Ukraine, and Tina Stavrinaki, member of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and Chair of the Working Group on Individual Complaints, spoke about how the non discrimination standards set out by the UN and those developed by the Court in its case law under the Convention apply to today’s realities, including in the context of emerging technologies, climate change, and armed conflict.
Emmanuel Decaux, President of the René Cassin Foundation, delivered the closing remarks, highlighting the Foundation’s commitment to human rights protection in line with René Cassin’s legacy: fostering dialogue between institutions, bringing protection systems closer together, and working towards ever more effective guarantees of fundamental rights.
Grand Chamber judgment concerning Estonia
In the case of Vainik and Others v. Estonia the Court decided to strike the applications out of its list of cases.
The case concerned the total ban on tobacco in Estonian prisons from October 2017. The three applicants in the case, prisoners at the time, complained that they could not smoke, which had led to them suffering from withdrawal symptoms.
The Court considered that it was no longer necessary to examine the application as the applicant had died and no heirs had come forward. The other two applicants were no longer affected by the ban because they had since been released and had, in any event, failed to respond to the Court’s attempts to contact them.
Judicial activities
01/07/26
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.
01/07/26
As part of its prevention of conflicts of interest, the Court has revised the Practice Direction on the Institution of proceedings. This revision clarifies the conditions under which a former member of the Registry may represent an applicant before the Court. This text will enter into force on 1 January 2027.
30/06/26
The Court will be delivering a Grand Chamber ruling in the case of Grande Oriente d’Italia v. Italy on 7 July 2026.
The case concerns the search – ordered by a parliamentary commission of inquiry in the context of a parliamentary inquiry into mafia-type organised crime – of the applicant 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 6,000 members of the applicant association.
- Press release
- Webcast of the hearing (19/11/2025)
- Country profile: Italy
30/06/26
In the case of Vainik and Others v. Estonia the Court decided to strike the applications out of its list of cases.
The case concerned the total ban on tobacco in Estonian prisons from October 2017. The three applicants in the case, prisoners at the time, complained that they could not smoke, which had led to them suffering from withdrawal symptoms.
The Court considered that it was no longer necessary to examine the application as the applicant had died and no heirs had come forward. The other two applicants were no longer affected by the ban because they had since been released and had, in any event, failed to respond to the Court’s attempts to contact them.
23/06/26
Annulment of presidential pardons was justified, but fair trial rights violated for two of the three applicants.
In the case of Taleski and Others v. North Macedonia the Court held that there had been no violation of the right to a fair trial on account of the legislative intervention permitting the annulment of the presidential pardons and the continuation of the criminal proceedings against the applicants. The Court also held that there had been:
- a violation of the right to a fair trial as regards the right to an adversarial trial on account of the failure to serve one of the applicants, with a copy of the higher prosecutor’s submissions; and
- a violation of the right to a fair trial as regards the right to an adversarial trial on account of the failure to serve another of the applicants, with a copy of the higher prosecutor’s submissions.
The case concerned a legislative intervention, the 2016 Pardon Act, which permitted the annulment of presidential pardons that had been granted to the applicants six weeks earlier and which, at the time, had been considered to be final and irrevocable. As a consequence, the pardons were annulled and the applicants, who were public officials, were prosecuted for abuse of official position and authority and various electoral offences. The case also concerned the fairness of those criminal proceedings.
23/06/26
The Court will deliver its ruling in writing in the case Vainik and Others v. Estonia on 30 June 2026.
The case concerns the total ban on smoking in prisons in Estonia from October 2017. The four applicants in the case, prisoners at the time, complained both about the ban itself and the withdrawal symptoms they had had.
Press releases on other judgments and decisions
25/06/26
Transparency and outreach
On the agenda
Videos
