While much of the judiciary is still on holidays, over 45 judges, prosecutors and other judicial specialists from the Republic of Moldova attended, on 23 August 2024, the online launch seminar of the Council of Europe HELP course on Personal Data Protection in the Publication of Judicial Decisions.

The launch seminar was organised by the National Institute of Justice of the Republic of Moldova (NIJ), in cooperation with the Justice and Human Rights Training Division of the Council of Europe.  It was moderated by Tatiana Bruma, the Head of the e-Learning Unit of the National Institute of Justice.

The online event started with a welcome address given by Ecaterina Popa, Head of the Training and Research Department of the NIJ and HELP Focal Point. She praised the cooperation with the HELP Programme, offering information about the impressive number of over 2000 users who took HELP courses over the last year alone. She also expressed NIJ’s interest in launching further HELP courses in the year to follow, focusing on a variety of topics, including those relevant for the integration of the Republic of Moldova in the European Union.

Tatiana Ciaglic, Head of the Legal Information Center of the NIJ and HELP tutor, talked about the national approaches and challenges regarding public access to court judgments/conclusions and other information about the cases examined in the courts. She was followed by Octavian Sofransky from the Digital Development and Governance Department of the Council of Europe. He addressed the challenges in the protection of the right to private life in the current world, and the Council of Europe’s response to them. He discussed in a bit more details the Council of Europe’s Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data and related instruments (Convention 108+).

The online event ended with a session led again by Tatiana Ciaglic, the HELP tutor for the attending group, who talked about how the course was to be implemented online following the event. She will provide the participants with support and guidance during the following weeks. 

During the launch event, all participants have been registered on the dedicated course page and are now ready to start the tutored course. HELP certificates, issued by the Council of Europe and the NIJ, will be awarded to those who successfully complete the course.

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HELP course on Personal Data Protection in the Publication of Judicial Decisions  recognises that the wider publication of judicial decisions is a fundamental aspect of “open access of justice”, serving several public interests such as transparency, legal certainty, public trust and rule of law. However, it also implies several risks for privacy rights of individuals addressed under Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or the Council of Europe’s Convention 108+ for the protection of individuals with regard to automatic processing of personal data. Indeed, the risks of re-identification and profiling arising from the publication of judicial decisions are just a few examples of practices that can lead to discrimination, public humiliation, or violations of the right to be forgotten.

This online course was developed in 2023 by a group of experts and lawyers specialised on privacy and personal data protection. It aims to present in 2 modules, of 60 minutes each, the importance of data protection in te publication of judicial decision, what is personal data and how to collect, use and protect them through various mechanisms and instruments. The topics are explored in a practical way by using presentations, interactive screens, knowledge tests and reflective exercises, enabling the users to apply the gained knowledge and skills.

The course is primarily aimed at judicial professionals: judges, clerks, court registry staff, etc. However, it is relevant to all legal professionals such as prosecutors, lawyers, and can be particularly informative for policy drafters. It can also be used by other public authorities, including national human rights institutions, public administration staff, parliamentary staff, university students civil society organisations etc.

The course is available in self-learning format, which has a duration of 2 hours. It is currently available in English, Greek, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian and Slovenian. Translations in other languages   is in progress.  Upon completion, users can generate their electronic Statements of Accomplishment, in proof of their acquired knowledge and skills. 

HELP courses are intended, in the long term, to become an integral part of the overall learning curricula of the national training institutions and/or other competent authorities of the CoE member states and beyond.