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Court of Justice of the E.U. - Judgment in Case C-603/20 PPU SS v MCP (24.3.2021): The jurisdiction of the court of a Member State that is seised of an action relating to parental responsibility cannot be based on Article 10 of the Brussels II bis Regulation in a case of abduction of a child to a third State. Where a finding is made that the child now has his or her habitual residence in a third State, the jurisdiction of the court will have to be determined in accordance with the applicable international conventions or, in their absence, in accordance with Article 14 of the Brussels II bis Regulation. Facts SS and MCP are the father and mother of P, who was born in 2017 and has British citizenship. SS and MCP, who are of Indian nationality and have leave to remain in the United Kingdom, are not legally married but jointly hold parental responsibility. In October 2018 the mother went to India with the child, who has since lived there with her maternal grandmother and is therefore

by Christina Poursanidou, Lawyer Economic sanctions have a vital role in the global financial industry. The majority of countries have imposed sanctions or had sanctions imposed against either them or their citizens. Considering the above, it is important to have a clear understanding of the definition and the rationale of economic sanctions. Do the economic sanctions really work or do the negatives results outweigh the positives?  Economic sanctions have both diplomatic and economic nature. They are defined as restrictive measures against a target government, or non-state entities and individuals. They may comprise export and/or import bans, bans on the provision of specific services (brokering, financial services, technical assistance), flight bans, prohibitions on investment, payments and capital movements, or the withdrawal of tariff preferences.  Undoubtedly, all these restrictions may cause financial and humanitarian crises to the target countries. So, what is the ratio of these

By Evlampia Tsolaki, Lawyer On the occasion of the great anniversary for 200 years from the beginning of Greek 1821 Revolution we have decided to upload the below paper, which is an elaborated version of our presentation entitled ʺThe Paradigm of Hellenic Civil Code ‶ taken place on 28th June 2018 in the Biennial Conference ʺLaws Across Codes and Laws Decoded ‶ having being organized by the European Society of Comparative Legal History (ESCLH) in Paris (28th-30th June 2018). Its main subject matter describes the byzantine origins of Hellenic Civil Law and afterwards the attempts of designing Hellenic Civil Code in a dialectical relation with the formation of the modern Greek State, which (attempts) eventually resulted to its final composition. Nice reading! (European Society for Comparative Legal History:   http://esclh.blogspot.com/  /  Photo by  Wendy van Zyl  at  Pexels ) Read the paper here Read more articles by Evlampia Tsolaki here

In Chamber's judgment in the case of Bilgen v. Turkey (application no. 1571/07) the European Court of Human Rights held, unanimously, that there had been: a violation of Article 6 § 1 (right to a fair trial) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The case concerned a senior judge at the Ankara Regional Administrative Court who had been transferred without his consent to another court in a lower judicial district by a decree of the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors that had not been subject to judicial review. After reiterating the importance of separation of powers, the Court found in particular that denying the applicant access to a court for an important career matter had not pursued a legitimate aim and could have potentially damaged judicial independence and had thus violated his rights. Facts The applicant, Hüseyin Cahit Bilgen, is a Turkish national who was born in 1952 and lives in Ankara. In 1979 the applicant was appointed as an apprentice rapporteur judge at the

By Evlampia Tsolaki, Attorney at Law International arbitration inherently entails the transnational element that offers inexhaustible topics of research at multiple levels, namely at a doctrinaire, teleological and comparative plane, simultaneously. It is not a coincidence that there is an unending production of legal scholarship regarding international arbitration which is fueled by its flexible structure that has made it attractive for international commercial actors, both in the private and the public sector, as well. Against this background, international arbitration obviously raises novel legal issues while it challenges us to consider traditional ones in order to build a coherent and from that respect relatively safe legal environment. In this framework, there is an oxymoron, namely that established concepts of international arbitration that one would expect to have been clarified, remain rather vague, causing controversies and legal uncertainty. One of such a kind is confidentia

The right to a fair trial has long been recognised by the international community as a fundamental human right. Without a fair trial every individual risks becoming the victim of a miscarriage of justice. Either as an innocent suspect wrongly convicted, or as a victim unable to secure justice for a wrong perpetrated against them.  Ebru Timtik was one of 18 lawyers in Turkey who were members of the Progressive Lawyers Association, some of which were working at the People’s Law Office, made subject to a prosecution in the Istanbul 37th Assize Court under Articles 314 and 220 of the Turkish Penal 2 Code for terrorist offences. She and her colleagues were convicted on 20 March 2019 after a trial during which basic procedural safeguards and internationally recognised fair trial principles were ignored. Her conviction was based on the testimony of anonymous witnesses, many of which gave inconsistent testimony in relation to alleged facts and time periods. Documents allegedly obtained from g

Every year across Europe, millions of Europeans are victims of consumer fraud. They are cheated or misled about their purchases, or they experience payment card fraud. People with disabilities are more likely to fall victim to fraud than other groups. These are some of the findings of the Fundamental Rights Agency’s (FRA) recent survey into people’s experiences of crime. On the World Consumer Rights Day, FRA calls on EU countries to step up their efforts to protect consumers. FRA’s ‘ Crime,safety and victims’ rights ’ report reveals that: Consumer fraud – over one in four people (26%) in the EU were cheated or misled about goods, items or services purchased in the five years before the survey. Young people and those with higher levels of education experienced more online fraud. This may be because they shop more frequently online. Online banking fraud – nearly one in 10 (8%) experienced online banking or payment card fraud in the five years before the survey. Rates vary significant

Europol supported the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) to dismantle a criminal group distributing illegal video streams. The investigation also involved law enforcement authorities from Andorra and Portugal. The investigation started in October 2018 when the Spanish National Police received complaint reports from the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, Football Association Pretoria, the Premier League and the Spanish Football League (La Liga Espanola de Fútbol) about a mobile application illegally distributing video streams. The application, downloaded by more than 100 million users via different websites, illegally offered the streaming of videos and TV channels.  The investigation identified a number of connected websites and platforms located in Spain and Portugal with connections to servers in Czechia. The Spanish company behind the illegal activity earned its profits through advertisements. Through the computer infrastructure and power, they were able to sell

By George Kazoleas, Lawyer Two recent cases, one by the European Court of Human Rights and the other by the Athens Court of First Instance with similar facts, show once again that justice can dispel the darkness caused by human deceit having as a result the distortion of real facts. Against time and limitation Time, was essentially the reason why the courts in Serbia denied the 50-year-old Peda Boljevic the right to know the truth about who his biological father was. Until 2011 he believed that A was his real father but when he died, Boljevic discovered in old court rulings around 1970 that A could not be his biological father. So, at the beginning of 2012, he filed a lawsuit with his mother, invoking the old decisions by also adding the argument that back then there was no DNA test, but today this could be done based on a court decree. The courts in Serbia, both the court of first instance and the court of appeals, rejected his application as lapsed, after so many years. In particular

The Office of Public Counsel for Victims of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in Haque wants to recruit an Associate Legal Officer . The Statute of the International Criminal Court establishes an internationally new and unique system for the participation of victims in the proceedings before the Court. In addition, the Statute also provides victims with the right to apply for reparation for the harm suffered as a result of crimes under the jurisdiction of the Court. Due to the complexity of procedures governing the functioning of the Court, victims are legally represented and assisted. For the purpose of assisting victims with regard to their participation in proceedings and obtaining reparations, the Regulations of the Court has established the Office of Public Counsel for Victims that falls within the Registry solely for administrative purposes and otherwise shall function as a wholly independent office. In performing their tasks of assisting external legal representatives, as

Today, 8 March 2021, the International Criminal Court ("ICC" or the "Court") joins the international community in marking International Women's Day and seizes the occasion to announce the appointment of a Focal Point for Gender Equality at the Court. "I am pleased to announce that the ICC has finalised the recruitment of the Court's Focal Point for Gender Equality who will start her work today. This is a crucial milestone towards effectively improving gender-related issues in our institution," said ICC President, Judge Chile Eboe-Osuji. The Focal Point will assist the Court's Leadership in their efforts to strengthen gender related policies across the Court and to address issues related to employment conditions of women in the institution, including gender balance at all levels of employment. The Focal Point's key functions will include monitoring the Court's progress in strengthening gender equality; advocating on issues impacting

Women in Law : What Are The Challenges Around The World? Event by  Interlegal International Network As part of International Women's Day, the Interlegal International network presents a panel discussion on the challenges that face women in law around the world and how to empower women around us. Meet five women with inspiring professional backgrounds from 3 different continents. Our facilitator and the four panelists stand out in the field of law in their respective countries. They will discuss the evolution of the profession for women, the challenges to come for the new generation of lawyers, the barriers they have encountered as an entrepreneurs, the place of women in their country... -Gabriele Brand-Ogris, partner at BRAND RECHTSANWÄLTE GMBH in Austria and Vice-President at Interlegal -Maude Fréchette, cofondatrice de YULEX, attorneys and strategist in Canada -Özlem Kurt, Partner at Kurt and Partners in Turkey -Tone Bjørn, Partner at Consilium Advokatfirma in Norway -Tani

On 2 February 2021, the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPB) adopted Recommendations on the adequacy referential under the Law Enforcement Directive (LED). The aim of this document is to provide a list of elements to take into account when assessing the adequacy of the protection of personal data in non-EU countries in the field of law enforcement and criminal justice. A similar  adequacy referential under the GDPR  was already adopted by the EDPB in 2018. Building on the legal provisions of the LED and the case law of the Court of Justice of the EU, the document lays down the EU data protection standards for transfers in police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters. The adoption of the LED adequacy referential is timely, as it will provide practical guidance for the Commission when assessing the adequacy of the UK.   The EDPS played an active role in the preparation and adoption of the document, especially because the Commission’s adequacy decisions under

At the beginning of this year, the European Stability Mechanism (“ESM”) Members signed the agreement amending the ESM Treaty, which provides the legal basis for a set of new and broadened tasks for the ESM following the ratification of the revised treaty. In this context, ESM is looking for an experienced Legal Counsel to join the Legal department to strengthen the current legal capabilities, and to assist the ESM in preparing for these new and increased responsibilities. The selected candidate will be responsible for the institutional and corporate affairs of the ESM, now and in future, thereby working closely together with the other legal counsel within the Legal department. S/he will report directly to the Head of Legal and Procurement. This position involves leading, supporting, and participating in the implementation of the ESM reforms from a legal point of view, as well as supervising the relevant legal frameworks of both the ESM and the EFSF. It includes advising on a broad