PATFox and EYBA hold virtual seminar

Last week the PATFox Consortium held the virtual workshop Everything you need to know about SLAPPs, organised in partnership with the European Young Bar Association (EYBA).

Following presentations from Sergiy Barbashyn and Chiara Palombi, President Executive Officer of the EYBA, respectively, PATFox coordinator Alessia Schiavon introduced the project as well as the general phenomenon of SLAPP to participants.

Then, independent journalist Marco Bras dos Santos, target of a SLAPP case in Germany, shared its case with the audience. In December last year, Marco was convicted of trespass and fined following a criminal complaint from a mining company, whose site had been the location of a protest Marco had reported on. Marco’s appeal is now pending at Germany’s Constitutional Court.

Finally, Professor Justin Borg-Barthet, convenor of the University of Aberdeen’s new Anti-SLAPP Hub gave evidence on the strengths and weaknesses of the proposed directive.

The seminar was intended to reach early-career legal professionals including those outside the PATfox countries, through EYBA’s network.

The European Young Bar Association is a European non-profit association of young lawyers. Founded over 29 years ago, on 23 May 1993 in Prague, it brings together young bar associations from across Europe in one representative organisation, providing a unified voice for young lawyers on a continent-wide basis.

As part of the cooperation with EYBA, PATFox also participated at the EYBA International Weekend in London last month. Further information is available here.