On 8 November 2021, the Council of Europe HELP online courses on Business and Human Rights, Ethics for judges, prosecutors and lawyers as well as 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 Ana Medarska-Lazova, Deputy Head of HELP Unit. Raffaele Sabato, Judge of the European Court of Human Rights, offered an overview of the main concepts of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) by focusing on Protocols Nos. 15 and 16 to the ECHR. Moreover, Judge Sabato emphasised the role of legal professionals in the ECHR implementation at the national level and provide participants with an overview of the recent case-law of the European Court of Human Rights.

The tutors, Giovanna Franzese (violence against women and domestic violence) Francesca Paparoni (business) and Giovanni Pansini (ethics) 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.

**********

The Council of Europe HELP online courses on Business and Human Rights, Ethics for judges, prosecutors and lawyers 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’.