On 27 April 2021, the Council of Europe HELP online courses on Admissibility criteria in applications submitted to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), Key human rights principles in biomedicine and Violence against women and domestic violence were launched during an online meeting gathering 130 Italian lawyers. The launch was organised by the European Union-Council of Europe "HELP in the EU II" project in cooperation with the Italian Bar Council (Consiglio Nazionale Forense - CNF).

Participants had the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP) Programme of the Council of Europe and its online platform that includes a catalogue of 38 courses on human rights.

The group was welcomed by Francesca Sorbi, CNF National Councillor and Eva Pastrana, Head of HELP Unit. Raffaele Sabato, Judge of the European Court of Human Rights, offered an overview of the recent developments in the field of admissibility criteria, biomedicine and violence against women by focusing on Protocols Nos. 15 and 16 to the European Convention on Human Rights. It is noteworthy that the ratification of Italy of Protocol 15 to the ECHR triggers its entry into force in respect of all the Council of Europe member States with effect from 1 August 2021. This i.a. reaffirms the principle of subsidiarity (also one of the goals of the national versions of HELP courses) and reduces from six to four months the time-limit within which an application may be made to the Court following a final domestic decision.

In addition, the participants attended thematic presentations related to the topic of the HELP courses delivered by Simona Lazoni, member of the Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO) of the Council of Europe, and Fabio Macioce - full professor of Legal Theory and Bioethics at the Lumsa University of Rome and author of the HELP course.

The tutors, Giovanni Pansini (bioethics), Giovanna Franzese (violence against women and domestic violence), Francesca Paparoni and Francesco De Santis (admissibility criteria), provided the attendees with the details on the course structure and its implementation. They will be guiding the participants through the course in the following three months.

Following the online launch event, a number of lawyers will be enrolled on the course pages and will attend the respective HELP online courses in Italian. Those among them who successfully complete it will receive a HELP certificate issued by the Council of Europe.

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The Council of Europe HELP online courses on Admissibility criteria in applications submitted to the European Court of Human Rights, Key human rights principles in biomedicine and Violence against women and domestic violence are also available in a self-learning format on the HELP e-learning platform to any legal professional interested in the topic. It can be followed in English and many other languages. Those who complete it in self-learning mode can obtain an electronic ‘statement of accomplishment’.