Do western democracies protect free speech?

October 14th, 2012

In the age of social media, the European Union needs to defend free expression. But it often falls far short, says Padraig Reidy

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European Court rejects Max Mosley appeal

September 26th, 2011

Former motorsport boss turned privacy campaigner Max Mosley has had his appeal to the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights rejected. Mosley had hoped to overturn a May ruling establishing that media outlets were not required to notify the subjects of stories in advance of publication. But the court today announced that that judgment would be final. Solicitor Mark Stephens, who represented Index on Censorship, the Media Legal Defence Initiative and other interested parties in the case, said today: “This decision by the Grand Chamber and the previous decision by the court underline the recommendation made by the UK parliament’s Culture Media and Sport Committee. This is a great day for free speech in Britain and throughout Europe.” Index on Censorship news editor Padraig Reidy commented: “Index submitted its concerns about Mr Mosley’s prior-notification plans as we recognised the threat such an obligation would pose to investigative journalism. While privacy is of course a concern, forcing newspapers to reveal stories would have a serious chilling effect.”

UK: Max Mosley renews court bid for new privacy laws

June 3rd, 2011

Former motorsport chief Max Mosley has applied to appeal the European Court decision last month that ended his efforts to change Britain’s privacy laws. The court in Strasbourg threw out the Mosley’s bid for the subjects of newspaper stories to be given “prior notification” of publication. Mosley launched the case after the News of the World printed intimate details about his sex life in 2008. The appeal filed by Mosley’s lawyers to the Grand Chamber before will be the last opportunity for the case to be heard.    

Max Mosley: Sex, secrets and super-injunctions

May 10th, 2011

European Court finds against Mosley and throws responsibility back to Parliament — now MPs need to find a way to balance privacy against open justice and free expression, Geoffrey Robertson writes
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Max Mosley loses “prior notification” bid

May 10th, 2011

Former motorsport chief Max Mosley has failed in his bid to to impose a legal duty of “prior notification” on the press. Mosley brought a case in front of the European Court of Human Rights after UK newspaper the News of the World published details of his sex life. (more…)

Naomi Campbell case: Strasbourg rules “success fees” violate free expression

January 18th, 2011

The European Court of Human Rights today unanimously ruled that the payment of success fees of up to 100 per cent in privacy and defamation cases, under CFA agreements, constitutes a violation of the right to free expression. (more…)

Strasbourg Court must reject prior notification

January 11th, 2011

Peter Noorlander of the Media Legal Defence Initiative warns that today’s action by Max Mosley at the European Court of Human Rights could have grave consequences for free media
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Russia fined for banning gay pride marches

October 27th, 2010

European Court of Human Rights has fined Russia for repeatedly refusing activists the right to hold gay pride marches. The Moscow authorities claimed the parade would cause a violent reaction, but the court said Russia has discriminated against the gay community on grounds of sexual orientation. Nikolai Alexeyev, the leading activist said it is a “crippling blow to Russian homophobia”. He also said he is planning to take the former Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov to court. Russia has been ordered to pay Alexeyev 29510 euros (25678 British Pounds) for legal fees and damages.