The Anti-SLAPP Directive: A Good fit for Maltese Law?

Earlier in 2023, the Chamber of Advocates and aditus Foundation delivered an information session on the growing phenomenon of litigation aimed at stifling public participation, more commonly called SLAPPs.

Since that date, the European Parliament has approved a first draft of the Anti-SLAPP Directive (Directive 2022/0117), which was subsequently referred to the European Council – which in turn appears to favour a watered-down version of the proposed directive. The final text of the Directive is not yet approved, and will depend on the feedback received from the various member states if it is to be amended.

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OPPORTUNITY: ROLL (Rule of Law for Lawyers) Litigation on judicial independence

Call for Participation in workshops for lawyers on strenthening judicial independence and the rule of law through strategic litigation

The International Commission of Jurists – European Institutions (ICJ-EI) along with its partners (Human Rights in Practice, Free Courts, aditus, Forum for Human rights) is inviting lawyers from eight EU Member States (Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Malta and Spain) to join three workshops in 2023-2024. These workshops focus on using strategic litigation in order to protect judicial independence and the Rule of Law in the EU. Selected lawyers will have their travel expenses covered by the organisers.The workshops are organised as part of the ICJ’s ROLL project.

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Brussels Anti-SLAPP Legal training: Experiences from the PATFox Project

On 28 February 2023, the PATFox’s consortium organised a conference Anti-SLAPP Legal training: Experiences from the PATFox Project, at the premises of the European Parliament. The project Pioneering anti-SLAPP Training for Freedom of Expression (PATFox), co- funded by the European Commission, is pioneering the Europe’s first anti-SLAPP training, upskilling the lawyers representing journalists and human rights defenders against those litigating to shut down legitimate criticism in 11 EU member states (Spain, Germany, Malta, Bulgaria, Hungary, Croatia, Romania, Slovakia, Cyprus, Poland and Slovenia). aditus foundation is the Malta partner of the PATFox Consortium.

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Sneak peak to our 2023 projects…


We will be working on a number of exciting projects this year! They cover the areas identified in our 2022-2024 Strategic Plan and all target specific goals that we feel are crucial for the lives of many people living in Malta: asylum, equality and non-discrimination, rule of law, justice. You’ll see that the projects also reflect our mission to monitor, report and act on access to human rights, being projects that engage in various activities: research, publications, legal services, advocacy, training.

The projects are a mixture of continuous and new projects and here’s a sneak peak to what they are about. Together with these projects, we also have a number of on-going advocacy initiatives pushing for higher and better human rights standards.

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The first of its kind in Malta: Training for lawyers to Defend Victims of SLAPPs

This week aditus foundation, together with the Chamber of Advocates, held a training for lawyers to defend victims of Strategic litigation against public participation (SLAPPs). This three-hour workshop, a first of its kind in Malta, used both local and European practitioners and academics to examine existing local and European legislation that can be used by practising lawyers to defends journalists and media organisations, NGOs and activists when threatened or faced with a SLAPP.

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