Strasbourg Observers Podcast

Access to Justice before the Strasbourg Court with Veronika Fikfak

We’re excited to bring you closer to the European Court of Human Rights through our brand-new podcast. Join us as we explore key judgments, discuss emerging legal trends, and talk with experts and academics who help make sense of Strasbourg’s evolving jurisprudence. Whether you’re a seasoned legal scholar or just curious about human rights in Europe, our episodes offer insightful, accessible commentary that complements the blog you know and trust. In this episode of the Strasbourg Observers Podcast, Cathérine Van de Graaf speaks with Veronika Fikfak [https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/91056-veronika-fikfak], Professor of Human Rights and International Law at University College London, School of Public Policy and co-Director of the UCL Institute for Human Rights. Drawing on Veronika’s research on friendly settlements, damages, and the “European human rights bar”, they discuss how procedural practices and institutional actors can favour states over applicants, the role of specialised repeat-player lawyers, and why compliance with human rights judgments depends on more than financial compensation. Theconversation also explores disparities in access to justice across Europe and the methodological challenges of uncovering the Court’s less visible practices and “dark numbers”.   If you want to read more about the topics discussed, we point you to the following publications: Fikfak, Veronika. “Againstsettlement before the European Court of Human Rights” [https://academic.oup.com/icon/article/20/3/942/6830992?guestAccessKey=], International Journal of Constitutional Law, Volume 20, Issue 3, July 2022, Pages 942 975, https://doi.org/10.1093/icon/moac087 [https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2F10.1093%2Ficon%2Fmoac087&data=05%7C02%7CCatherine.VandeGraaf%40ugent.be%7C3b225837067a43ad83ee08deb750734d%7Cd7811cdeecef496c8f91a1786241b99c%7C1%7C0%7C639149753660914872%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=wSvdBoLM6h4H64zpAotetPaQzhTlU%2FxkYWbT77uFc28%3D&reserved=0].  Fikfak, Veronika, Skoczeń, Izabela, and Parker, Benedikt Harald. “An Effective Settlement Architecture? How FriendlySettlements Affect the Perception of Fairness and Trust. [https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpapers.ssrn.com%2Fsol3%2Fpapers.cfm%3Fabstract_id%3D6653699&data=05%7C02%7CCatherine.VandeGraaf%40ugent.be%7C3b225837067a43ad83ee08deb750734d%7Cd7811cdeecef496c8f91a1786241b99c%7C1%7C0%7C639149753661047266%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=B%2F8o7f8UmqIwutFDNa8UZxS2n8Ae%2FxTAVHe5PzmYl%2Fs%3D&reserved=0]”  Available at SSRN, April 24, 2026. Keller, Helen, Magdalena Forowicz, and Lorenz Engi. “Friendly Settlements before the European Court of HumanRights [https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2F10.1093%2Facprof%3Aoso%2F9780199600977.001.0001&data=05%7C02%7CCatherine.VandeGraaf%40ugent.be%7C3b225837067a43ad83ee08deb750734d%7Cd7811cdeecef496c8f91a1786241b99c%7C1%7C0%7C639149753661090955%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=jYw%2FRCnwoFZu4%2BJqt3KNlw1pZtrfBTvh0l27UEFnVK8%3D&reserved=0].” Theory and Practice (Oxford, 2010): online edn, Oxford Academic, 1 Jan. 2011.   Fiss, Owen M. “Against Settlement [https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flaw.yale.edu%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fdocuments%2Ffaculty%2Fpapers%2Fagainstsettlement.pdf&data=05%7C02%7CCatherine.VandeGraaf%40ugent.be%7C3b225837067a43ad83ee08deb750734d%7Cd7811cdeecef496c8f91a1786241b99c%7C1%7C0%7C639149753661139854%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=7rEfQMCxLY6IZlHux8NvScN6oF%2BwryLFIs4qW4v%2FEtY%3D&reserved=0].” Yale Law Journal 93(1983): 1073.   Voeten, Erik. "Gender and Judging: Evidence from the European Court ofHuman Rights [https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tandfonline.com%2Fdoi%2Fabs%2F10.1080%2F13501763.2020.1786146%3Fcasa_token%3DPvgP_TKBLHwAAAAA%3AfjtxDbscv1IPmdVboRrzphxRhGcT_7_pMibbx-gI0rwqafop8A6WFcmbR-fd8xdZals_Hfp9oygzqw&data=05%7C02%7CCatherine.VandeGraaf%40ugent.be%7C3b225837067a43ad83ee08deb750734d%7Cd7811cdeecef496c8f91a1786241b99c%7C1%7C0%7C639149753661199517%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=c2FgQPeAlLAKfyHfMCaG3F0zHKLBFyRhBHtntQDikf4%3D&reserved=0]" (2021) 28(9) Journal of European Public Policy 1453   Jomarjidze, Nino and Leach, Philip. “Whatfuture for settlements and undertakings in international human rightsresolution?” [https://strasbourgobservers.com/2019/04/15/what-future-for-settlements-and-undertakings-in-international-human-rights-resolution/] Strasbourg Observers 15 April 2019.

Looking back at S.A.S. v. France with Eva Brems

In this episode of the Strasbourg Observers Podcast [https://open.spotify.com/show/2lryux7nsCkHFsKWfQl6JW?si=f037ff918af64b5c&nd=1&dlsi=1d32425fc27f4eb3], Cathérine Van de Graaf speaks with Eva [https://hrc.ugent.be/staff/eva-brems/]Brems [https://hrc.ugent.be/staff/eva-brems/] (Human Rights Centre, Ghent University) about the 2014 S.A.S. v. France judgment [https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre?i=001-145466] before the European Court of Human Rights. They revisit the Court’s controversial acceptance of the face veil ban under the notion of “living together”, discuss the lack of evidence-based reasoning and the marginalisation of affected women’s voices, and reflect on the judgment’s broader impact on what is now referred to as "the procedural turn" and on further debates on religious dress across Europe.

Climate change litigation at the Strasbourg Court with Corina Heri

In this episode of the Strasbourg Observers Podcast, Cathérine Van de Graaf and Eva Brems speak with Corina [https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/nl/medewerkers/c-heri]Heri [https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/nl/medewerkers/c-heri] https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/nl/medewerkers/c-heri(Tilburg University) about the European Court of Human Rights' role in the fight against climate change, looking back at the landmark Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz v. Switzerland judgment. They discuss the Court’s reasoning on states’ climate obligations, the standing of the KlimaSeniorinnen association, debates about judicial activism, reactions and (non-)implementation in Switzerland, and the implications for future climate cases before national and international courts, as well as within the Council of Europe system.

Russia’s Exit from the Council of Europe – with Philip Leach

In this episode of the Strasbourg Observers Podcast, Cathérine Van de Graaf speaks with Professor Philip Leach [https://www.mdx.ac.uk/about-us/our-people/staff-directory/prof-philip-leach/] (Middlesex University, former Director of the European Human Rights Advocacy Centre [https://ehrac.org.uk/en_gb/]) about one of the most significant ruptures in the European human rights system: Russia’s expulsion from the Council of Europe in March 2022. They discuss what the withdrawal means for individual applicants before the European Court of Human Rights, the fate of pending cases, the role of local partners in Russia, and the broader implications for international human rights law.