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According to media reports, the Landgericht Berlin (Berlin Regional Court - LG Berlin) decided in an interim procedure on 23 March 2018 (Case no. 31 O 21/18) that Facebook had acted unlawfully by deleting a user’s comment on the grounds of alleged breaches of its guidelines. The decision is significant, not least because it is the first time since the Netzwerkdurchsetzungsgesetz (Network Enforcement Act - NetzDG) entered into force that a court has ruled on Facebook’s deletion strategy in a real-life case. The decision concerns events that took place in January 2018. A Facebook user had posted...

On 26 April 2018, the European Commission published the Communication on "Tackling online disinformation: a European approach", setting out the views of the Commission on the challenges associated with disinformation online. It was developed in consideration of consultations with citizens and stakeholders and of the report of the High Level Expert Group published on 12 March 2018 (see IRIS 2018-1/8 and IRIS 2018-5/7). Recognising the threat of online disinformation, particularly on policy making and electoral processes, and the cross-border dimension of online disinformation, the Communication...

On 25 May 2018, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation became applicable, with the repeal of the previous Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC) also becoming effective (see IRIS 1998-8/21). The GDPR is now binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all member states. While the GDPR is directly applicable, the date of 25 May 2018 is also the deadline for member states to notify the European Commission of any national legislation adopted pursuant to a number of Chapters and Articles in the GDPR, including Chapter VI on independent supervisory authorities for monitoring the...

On 13 April 2018, the Copenhagen Declaration on the reform of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) system was adopted following a High Level Conference in Copenhagen on 12 and 13 April 2018, under the Danish Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. The purpose of the Declaration is to address challenges facing the ECHR system and to find ways to improve the system. The Declaration begins with the States Parties to the ECHR reaffirming their deep and abiding commitment to the ECHR. Importantly, the State Parties reaffirm their strong attachment to the right...

On 12 April 2018, the French Government became the tenth High Contracting Party to ratify Protocol 16 to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and thus triggered the entry into force of the Protocol that establishes a referral mechanism between the national courts and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). As the preamble states, the extension of the ECtHR’s competence to give advisory opinions will further enhance the interaction between the ECtHR and national authorities, and thereby reinforce the implementation of the ECHR, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity Under...