Equality Now joins coalition submission to the ECtHR on proposed amendments to Rules 36 and 44 of the Rules of Court

The submission calls on the Court not to adopt the amendments in their current form and instead to undertake further consultation with civil society organisations and practitioners with direct experience representing applicants in situations of vulnerability before the Court. 

It urges that any revised rules must clearly respect the wishes and preferences of the applicant, provide a mechanism to challenge or replace an appointed representative, and avoid giving respondent Governments control over the appointment of representatives in cases against them.  

More specifically, the submission recommends that the Court should not rely on domestic appointment procedures as the default solution and should not import domestic restrictions on legal capacity or representation into Strasbourg proceedings. Instead, it proposes that the Court develop a genuinely independent and transparent mechanism,  for example through the Registry or the Council of Europe, for identifying qualified lawyers or specialised organisations who can represent applicants where needed. 

The key message of the submission is that measures intended to support applicants in situations of vulnerability must strengthen, not diminish, their autonomy, trust, and effective access to justice before the Court.