Impact of the Coronavirus on the ECHR process

At the time of writing, France has been put under a temporary lockdown as a result of the Coronavirus, restricting all non-essential activity. This message is to provide an update about the impact of this on the ECHR process, in particular in regard to the implementation monitoring mechanism.

The European Court of Human Rights

The Court recently published a document stating how it would proceed in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. Most notably, although the Court as a building is closed it continues to carry out key functions through staff teleworking. It is also making a temporary amendment to the time requirements for submissions.

The Implementation Monitoring Mechanism

Similarly to the Court, the office of the Department for the Execution of Judgments is closed but it is continuing to operate via teleworking. The Department informs us that there are currently no changes to the deadlines for making NGO submissions for the next CM/DH meeting in June. However, it is also suspected that some government submissions may be delayed due to the virus. There is currently no decision to postpone the June CM/DH meeting. The Department will provide us with more updates if anything changes.

European Implementation Network - Secretariat

The EIN office is closed but we continue to operate via teleworking. The virus has led to the postponement of events EIN planned this Spring. In regard to the EIN briefing prior to the June CM/DH meeting, we are currently exploring ways to provide short video briefings to permanent representations.

If you have any questions about the above, please do not hesitate to contact us at contact@einnetwork.org