Lawyers do not have same freedom to speak out as journalists, rules European Court of Human Rights

updated on 03 June 2015

The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled that lawyers cannot be "equated with journalists" to speak out on sensitive and high-profile cases.

The court was ruling in Morice v France; as reported by Legal Futures, the case involved a French lawyer speaking out on the impartiality of two judges.  The court said, "Their respective positions and roles in judicial proceedings are intrinsically different."

It went on to add: "Journalists have the task of imparting, in conformity with their duties and responsibilities, information and ideas on all matters of public interest, including those relating to the administration of justice.

"Lawyers, for their part, are protagonists in the justice system, directly involved in its functioning and in the defence of a party. They cannot therefore be equated with an external witnesses whose task it is to inform the public."