Human Rights

ECHR Prisoner Voting Rights Decision Fans Flames of U.K. Euroskepticism

August 13, 2014

The European Court of Human Rights ("ECHR") has held that the U.K. ban on prisoner voting is a human rights violation.
Grayling Announces Plans for U.K. Human Rights Act Repeal

August 06, 2014

U.K. Secretary of State for Justice Chris Grayling says the Conservative Party will issue a policy document outlining plans to repeal the U.K. Human Rights Act in favor of a British Bill of Rights, and to reinstate supremacy of British courts over human rights law.
House of Lords Committee Criticizes "Right to Be Forgotten"

August 06, 2014

A report from the House of Lords Committee on the EU finds that the Court of Justice of the EU's recent decision establishing a right to have one's information removed from online search results gives EU citizens a right that is neither enforceable by governments nor practicable for companies to carry out.
ECJ Denies Right of Access to Personal Data in Legal Analyses

August 06, 2014

The Court of Justice of the EU ("ECJ") has held that the right to access personal data under the EU Data Protection Directive does not apply to personal data used by government agencies in the conduct of a legal examination of a person's status or rights.
EU Regulators Question Tech Companies on "Right to Be Forgotten"

July 30, 2014

EU data regulators have sent a series of questions to tech companies seeking information on how these companies plan to implement the Court of Justice of the EU's recent decision that they must take down certain links upon the request of individuals.
European Court Decides Poland Violated Human Rights with CIA Cooperation

July 28, 2014

In a controversial decision, the European Court of Human Rights has ruled that the Polish Government violated human rights by cooperating with the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency ("CIA") in operating "black sites" - where terror suspects were allegedly taken for interrogation and torture - in its territory.
ECJ: EU Countries Cannot Hold Illegal Immigrants in Prison

July 23, 2014

The Court of Justice of the EU ("ECJ") has held that illegal immigrants who are held for deportation from the EU cannot be housed in regular prisons, but must rather be placed in "special detention facilities."
EU Authorities to Meet with Companies over "Right to Be Forgotten"

July 23, 2014

Following a recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU requiring internet companies to take down some search results at the request of individuals, the EU data protection advisory board will meet with representatives from these companies to develop a framework for implementing the decision.
ECHR: No Right in Convention to Same-Sex Marriage

July 23, 2014

The European Court of Human Rights ("ECHR") has held that the European Convention on Human Rights does not mandate the recognition among acceding countries of same-sex marriages.
ECJ Ruling Causes U.K. to Seek New Data Retention Law

July 18, 2014

Responding to a ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU ("ECJ") invalidating an EU data detention directive that it held interferes with the right to privacy, the U.K. Government is now pushing for a new law that would permit companies to retain personal data for twelve months.