The first meeting of the Expert Council on NGO Law in its newly constituted membership presided by Jeremy Mcbride, was held In Strasbourg on 20-21 September. The vast majority of members were new to the Expert Council (12 out of 16 members, counting its honorary President, Cyril Ritchie) and - for some even - the working methods of the Council of Europe. The meeting thus began with an introduction to both the tasks undertaken by the Expert Council and the organisation of the Council of Europe. It then settled down to the agenda and agreed a set of procedures designed to maintain the quality of its opinions and studies, the most recent of which is a Compendium of Council of Europe practice relating to the right to freedom of association and the position of non-governmental organisations. The bulk of the meeting was concerned with considering: the potential afforded by the proposed Freedom of Association Project to tackle unjustified restrictions on the operation of NGOs and the role that would be played in it by the Expert Council; the implications of the draft Committee of Ministers Recommendation on the promotion and protection of civil society space; the steps that might be taken to promote Recommendation CM/Rec(2007)14; the situations in various countries that might require the adoption of opinions regarding legislative measures that would have an adverse effect on NGOs; the countries that might most usefully be the subject of fact-finfing visits by the Conference of INGOs (in which the Expert Council participates); and the way in which the Expert Council could work more effectively with other Council of Europe bodies whose work is also relevant for NGOs (notably GRECO, MONEYVAL and the Venice Commission).
Expert Council on NGO Law
It was created in January 2008 by the Conference of INGOs of the Council of Europe with the aim of creating an enabling environment for NGOs through examining national NGO legislation and its implementation and providing advice on how to bring national law and practice into line with Council of Europe standards and European good practice.
The Expert Council provides follow-up to a Recommendation adopted in 2007 by the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers which sets a framework for the legal status of NGOs in Europe (CM/Rec(2007)14) and to the Council of Europe's commitment to the role of civil society in the promotion of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. It co-operates closely with other Council of Europe bodies, in particular the Venice Commission and the Commissioner for Human Rights
Expert Council on NGO Law Brochure
Key documents
- Terms of reference
- Recommendation (2007)14 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on the legal status of non-governmental organisations in Europe - exists also in the following languages : Azerbaijani, Belarusian, Czech, French, German, Italian, Russian and Spanish
- European Convention on Human Rights
Current members of the Expert Council
- Biographies of the members
- Contact Jeremy McBride for further information
President of the Expert Council on NGO Law
Studies by the Expert Council
Thematic studies
- Stigmatisation of Non-Governmental Organisations In Europe (2024)
- Non-Governmental Organisations and the Implementation of Measures Against Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (2022)
- The Execution of Judgments Involving Freedom of Association (2022)
- The Legal Space for Non-Governmental Organisations in Europe (2021)
- Young Environmental Defenders and Their Rights (2021) in English and in Russian
- European practices related to participation of NGOs in Policy Development (2021)
- Review of developments in standards, mechanisms and case law related to NGOs 2017-2019 (2020)
- Guidelines on Protecting NGO Work in Support of Refugees and Other Migrants in English (2020) and in Russian
- Using Criminal Law to Restrict the Work of NGOs Supporting Refugees and Other Migrants in Council of Europe Member States in English (2019) and in Russian
- Compendium of opinions adopted by the Expert Council on NGO Law (2018)
- International Standards Relating to Reporting and Disclosure Requirements for Non-Governmental Organizations (2018)
- Compendium of Council of Europe practice relating to the right to freedom of association and the position of non-governmental organisations (2018)
- Review of developments in standards, mechanisms and case law 2015-2017
- Review of developments in standards, mechanisms and case law 2013-2015
- Regulating political activities of NGOs
- Review of developments in standards, mechanisms and case law
- Conditions of establishment of NGOs
- Internal governance of NGOs
- Sanctions and liability in respect of NGOs
Country studies
Croatia - Opinion on the Compatibility of Amendments to the Croatia Law on Associations and the Law on Foundations with European Standards (2023) - In English / In Croatian
Italy - Opinion on the compatibility with European standards of Italian Decree Law No. 1 of 2 January 2023 on the management of migratory flows (2023) - In English / In Italian
Belarus - Opinion on the compatibility with international and regional standards of recent amendments to the Belarusian legislation affecting NGOs (2022) - In English / In Belarusian
France - Opinion on the compatibility with the European standards of the French Bill to ensure respect for the principles of the republic by all (Mar 2021) - In English / In French
Russia - Opinion on the compatibility with European standards of recent and planned amendments to the Russian legislation affecting NGOs (Feb 2021) - In English / In Russian
Greece - Addendum to thr Opinion on the compatability with European standards of recent and planned amendments to the Greek legislation on NGO registration (Nov 2020) - In English / In Greek
Greece - Opinion on the compatability with European standards of recent and planned amendments to the Greek legislation on NGO registration (July 2020) - In English / In Greek
Turkey - Opinion on the compatibility of amendments to the Turkish law on associations with European standards (2020) - In English / In Turkish
Serbia - Opinion on the Draft Amendments to the Serbian Law on Access to Information of Public Utility (2018) - In English / In Serbian
Turkey - Opinion on the impact of the state of emergency on Freedom of Association in Turkey (2017) - In English / In Turkish
Hungary - Opinion on the Hungarian Draft Act on the Transparency of Organisations supported from abroad (2017) - In English
Romania - Opinion on the Romanian Draft Law 140/2017 on Associations and Foundations (2017) - In English
Cyprus - Civil Society in Cyprus: Building for the Future (2015) - In English
Russian Federation - Country study on NGO legislation in the Russian Federation (2015/2014/2013) - In English
Azerbaijan - Country study on NGO legislation in Azerbaijan (2014/2011/2009) - In English
