Guja v Moldova, App no 14277/04 (ECtHR,12 February 2008)
Guja v Moldova, App no 14277/04 (ECtHR, 12 February 2008)
This 2008 is a landmark ruling from the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights on Article 10 (freedom of expression rights) of the European Convention on Human Rights as it applies to whistleblowing. Specifically it examined the restrictions deemed necessary in a democratic society (particularly on grounds of confidentiality) in relation to the public interest in the disclosure of information to the press.
The Applicant, then Head of the Press Department of the Prosecutor’s General Office, had been dismissed for disclosing evidence to the media about political interference in criminal proceedings. The judgment confirmed that in some cases the public interest in the disclosure of information could be so strong as to override a legally imposed duty of confidence. The decision sets out the key factors to be considered when determining whether such a disclosure could be justified including but not limited to: the public interest of the relevant information; the authenticity of the information; whether there were alternative means for the disclosure to have been made; the good faith of the whistleblower; the severity of the sanction imposed; and the damage (if any) caused to the public authority by the disclosure). The court emphasised that not all these factors need to be met in order to gain protection. Having considered these factors, the court agreed that the applicant’s Article 10 rights had been violated and awarded him damages arising out of his dismissal plus costs.
The judgement is offically available in in French. Other translations can be found here.