The Council of Europe has published a new Guide for Legal Professionals on Freedom of Expression, SLAPPs and Related ECHR Standards, developed under the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye.

The Guide is designed to support lawyers defending journalists and civil society organisations targeted by Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs), as well as judges adjudicating such cases. While the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has developed a rich body of jurisprudence protecting freedom of expression, these standards are not always consistently applied by domestic courts. It is intended to complement the Training Programme on Countering the use of SLAPPs, developed by the Division for Cooperation on Freedom of Expression.

Structured thematically, the Guide introduces the main principles established under the European Convention on Human Rights and illustrates them with landmark ECtHR judgments. It aims to contribute to the development of national jurisprudences that reflect European human rights standards and set judicial precedents that shield freedom of media.

The Guide is  produced through the action “Protecting freedom of expression and of the media in Serbia (PROFREX)”, implemented by the Division for Cooperation on Freedom of Expression, under the joint European Union and the Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”.

Publication in English: Guide for Legal Professionals on Freedom of Expression, SLAPPs and Related ECHR Standards

Publication in Serbian: Guide for Legal Professionals on Freedom of Expression, SLAPPs and Related ECHR Standards