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Kedves Egyesületi Tagok!

Az alábbiakban a prágai CEELI Institute ‘Countering SLAPP cases in the CEE region’ elnevezésű workshopjáról szóló felhívást, és csatolva annak magyar nyelvű fordítását közöljük.

Magyar Bírói Egyesület

"The workshop focusing on ‘Countering SLAPP cases in the CEE region’ will take place in Prague at the CEELI Institute on Monday and Tuesday, 26-27 February 2024. The workshop is a part of our project focusing on protecting the rule of law and strengthening the independence of judiciary in Central and Eastern Europe. The participants of the workshop will consist of judges and lawyers from the following 8 countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia. Please find attached the announcement of the course for more details. We would appreciate if you could forward this email/announcement through the Association of Hungarian Judges to judges in the country. There is an open call for applications for this training with a deadline of Wednesday, December 20^th.

Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) refers to legal claims or threats of legal action that involve an abuse of process or right in matters concerning the defendant’s exercise of their right to public participation on a matter of public interest. SLAPPs use the judicial process for purposes other than genuinely asserting, vindicating, or exercising a right. They suppress a communication on a matter of public interest and produce a broader chilling effect on free speech. The strategy of using fully or partially unfounded lawsuits against journalists and human rights defenders force them to invest time, money, and energy into defending themselves in courts. It is becoming increasingly apparent that SLAPPs present a threat to democracy, the rule of law, human rights, and the proper functioning of the European Union. This awareness has led to a number of initiatives to deter, remedy or penalize SLAPPs. In April 2022, the European Commission introduced a package of Anti-SLAPP measures, including a proposed Anti-SLAPP Directive covering SLAPPs in civil matters with cross-border implications. The proposed Directive is currently making its way through the legislative process.

The training aim is to provide the participants with an overview of the European and National legal framework mechanisms addressing cases of SLAPPs, the proposed EU anti-SLAPP directive which provides courts and targets of SLAPPs with the tools to fight back against manifestly unfounded or abusive court proceedings and its main elements (early dismissal of a manifestly unfounded court proceedings, procedural costs, compensation of damages, dissuasive penalties, and protection against third country judgments), and to enhance the knowledge and skills of judges and lawyers to effectively deal with these court proceedings.

The CEELI Institute will cover the travel, accommodation, transfers, and all the additional logistics during their stay in Prague.