Romania, an example of increased national capacity to execute ECHR judgments in 2025 (report)
Romania is among the countries which made significant progress in implementing the judgments and decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in 2025, although, overall, numerous important challenges persist, according to the 19th Annual Report of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, published on Wednesday in Strasbourg.
According to this report, the Committee of Ministers, which is responsible for supervising the implementation of the ECHR judgments by member states, closed a total of 949 cases over the past year, compared with 894 cases in 2024, representing an increase of 6.2 percent.
The report mentions the fact that Romania recorded the highest drop in both the number of pending cases (-124) and leading cases pending full implementation over the past year (-27). Austria, Estonia, France, Germany and Lithuania also recorded significant reductions in the number of leading cases pending.
At the same time, significant challenges persist in implementing judgments, including the complexity of cases received, the continued increase in the number of leading cases pending, and the fact that over 500 leading cases have been awaiting resolution for more than five years.
In light of the growing complexity of the pending caseload, the report underscores the strategic importance for states to further strengthen their domestic capacity to execute the ECHR judgments, highlighting Romania as a positive example.
The report mentioned that 'the lack of participation and information from the Russian Federation also remains a major systemic obstacle for the Convention system and the supervision process in 2025.' Russia was excluded from the Council of Europe in 2022, but continues to have a legal obligation to implement relevant ECHR judgments.
On the other hand, the report highlights the positive developments regarding Ukraine, which led to the closure of 97 cases - including 11 leading cases - in 2025, despite the difficult circumstances caused by the war.
In terms of Romania, the report mentioned the total number of cases received since the ratification of the European Convention (2,223) and those closed to date (1,936).
In 2025, the Committee of Ministers received from the European Court 22 cases against Romania for supervision of their execution (compared to 51 in 2024 and 87 in 2023).
Of the new violations found by the ECHR in 2025, most of them concerned the criminal investigations conducted since the early 1990s regarding violent crackdowns on anti-governmental demonstrations at the fall of the Communist regime in Romania, domestic violence and freedom of expression.
'On 31 December 2025, there were 287 cases pending execution (compared to 411 in 2024 and 476 in 2023), of which 33 were leading cases classified under enhanced procedure (compared to 37 in 2024 and 2023), and 50 were leading cases classified under standard procedure. Of the leading cases under enhanced procedure, 21 have been pending for five years or more; similarly, 27 of the leading cases under standard procedure have been pending for five years or more (compared to 38 in 2024 and 30 in 2023),' according to the report.
The Romanian authorities submitted 29 action plans, 94 action reports and 46 communications. Updated action plans/action reports or communications which included additional information were awaited for 19 groups/cases, in which either the deadline set by the Committee of Ministers in this respect has expired (five cases) or feedback was sent by the Department for the Execution of Judgments (DEJ) before 1 January 2025 (14 cases).
Full payment of the just satisfaction awarded by the ECHR was registered in 65 cases in 2025, while confirmation of full payment and/or default interest was awaited in 46 cases for which the deadline indicated in the Court's judgment has passed since more than six months.
The main achievements of the past year were represented by the closure of 146 cases, including four leading cases under enhanced supervision and 27 leading cases under standard supervision. The report informed that 'it was possible to close several leading cases following: legislative amendments, notably those concerning safeguards against overlapping criminal and administrative proceedings in tax matters, the detention regime of prisoners automatically classified as 'dangerous', and deficiencies governing the activity of forensic institutes; and the alignment of national judicial practice with the Court's findings, notably regarding the rights of the defence in criminal proceedings, as well as the application by national courts of the 'Engel' criteria to proceedings not classified as criminal under domestic law, thereby upholding Convention protection.'
Moreover, 115 repetitive cases were closed because no further individual measures were necessary or possible.
Notable progress, recognised by the Committee, in cases that are still pending include the progress achieved by the Romanian authorities in improving the conditions of detention and medical care for prisoners suffering from serious or terminal illnesses. Also, there was a consolidation of the preventive remedy to effectively address complaints related to overcrowding and material conditions of detention.
The pending caseload on 31 December 2025, notably includes 'cases concerning ineffective investigations into allegations of sexual violence; cases concerning the unjustified use of firearms or ill-treatment by law enforcement agents and ineffective criminal investigations, including those into possible discriminatory motives; a case concerning the lack of safeguards
in the statutory framework governing secret surveillance; a case involving multiple violations related to the applicant's secret detention and 'extraordinary rendition' during a CIA secret rendition operation; cases concerning the nonenforcement of domestic decisions; cases relating to the absence of legal recognition and protection for same-sex couples, as well as the lack of a clear and foreseeable legal framework for the recognition of gender identity; and a case concerning the lack of effective avenues to obtain reparation in instances of alleged medical negligence.' AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Raluca-Elena Anghel; EN - writing by: Rodica State)
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