CEDH · CASELAW;COMMUNICATEDCASES;ENG — 3 septembre 2025

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .s379BC09C { margin-top:36pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:right } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s5E1364CA { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:14pt } .s339D85E6 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:14pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s665E407E { margin-top:66pt; margin-bottom:14pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .s10950C61 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic } Published on 22 September 2025   FOURTH SECTION Application no. 16777/23 Ekaterina MESKHIDZE against Georgia lodged on 13 April 2023 communicated on 3 September 2025 STATEMENT OF FACTS The application concerns defamation proceedings brought against the applicant following her allegations of sexual harassment against her hierarchical superior. In particular, on 25 January 2016, after having worked for more than eleven years at the National Agency of Public Registry of Georgia under the Ministry of Justice (“the Agency”), the applicant resigned, alleging that the head of the Agency and her immediate hierarchical superior, had been sexually harassing her for years. On 3 May 2017, the Public Defender’s Office, acting on the applicant’s complaint, issued a recommendation concluding that the applicant had been subjected to harassment, including sexual harassment, by the head of the Agency, which constituted gender ‑ based discrimination. On 24 and 26 March 2018 the applicant gave two anonymous televised interviews in which she spoke about her experience of sexual harassment by her former superior. On 27 March 2018 the latter resigned from his position. On 28 March 2018 the applicant again spoke, this time publicly, about her allegations. On 11 June 2018 the former head of the Agency initiated defamation proceedings against the applicant, requesting that she retract her statements made during the televised interviews. On 9 august 2019 the Tbilisi City Court ruled against the applicant, finding that her interviews contained factually untrue statements, which damaged her former superior’s reputation. The applicant was ordered to publicly retract those statements. The decision was upheld on appeal by the Tbilisi Court of Appeal and subsequently by the Supreme Court of Georgia on 9 December 2020 and 13 April 2022, respectively. The applicant complains under Articles 8 and 10 of the Convention separately and in conjunction with Article 14. QUESTION TO THE PARTIES Having regard to the manner in which the defamation proceedings were conducted, has there been an interference with the applicant’s rights under Articles   8 and 10 of the Convention, both alone and in conjunction with Article   14? If so, was that interference in accordance with the law and necessary in a democratic society (see Allée v. France , no.   20725/20, 18   January 2024; see also C. v. Romania , no. 47358/20, 30 August 2022)?