Council of Europe

European Criminal Bar Association

The European Criminal Bar Association (ECBA) is an independent organisation of specialist defence lawyers based in Council of Europe countries. The aim of the ECBA is to promote “the fundamental rights of persons under criminal investigation, suspects, accused and convicted persons”. Details of working groups covering e-evidence, human rights, extradition and European Arrest Warrant and anti-corruption in Europe are given on the site along with their working documents.

Octopus Cybercrime Community

Website of the Octopus Cybercrime Community, an initiative of the Council of Europe for information sharing and cooperation on cybercrime and electronic evidence. Resources on the site include the Country Wiki, giving details of national cybercrime policy, legislation (including links to full-text legislation) and cases, together with information about each country's status regarding the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime.

Council of Europe: Evaluation of Judicial Systems (CEPEJ-STAT)

CEPEJ-STAT is a database developed by the Council of Europe’s European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ). It allows users to find and compare data on the efficiency, quality and effectiveness of the judicial systems of Council of Europe member states. Ir includes information on the budgets of the judicial systems in individual member states, gender equality and use of information technology in the courts. The database is updated every two years. The CEPEJ-STAT website also provides supporting documentation on the methodology and data collection.

Council of Europe European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ)

The European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) is the body established by the Council of Europe to improve the quality and efficiency of European judicial systems and strengthen court users’ confidence in them. The CEPEJ develops tools to support member states in their reform of court organisations and implement European justice standards. The site gives information on the work of the CEPEJ including the CEPEJ-STAT database which has comparison data for the judicial systems of the Council of Europe's member states.

Texts adopted by the Congress of local and regional authorities

Collection of legal texts adopted by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) and its forerunner, the Standing Conference of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe. The Congress is an institution of the Council of Europe (CoE) and the texts are on the CoE website. The collection comprises: resolutions and opinions (1957- ); conventions and charters; recommendations (1994 - ); the Council of Ministers' replies to recommendations (2003 - ); and the final declarations adopted at the close of international conferences and meetings.

European Commission for Democracy through Law

The European Commission for Democracy through Law, known as the Venice Commission, is a Council of Europe body that was established in 1990. Originally set up to assist Eastern European countries in the re-engineering of their constitutions, it now monitors and provides assistance to countries all around the world and has more than 60 member states. The website outlines the Commission's activities, which include providing advice and training to individual states on constitutional matters, elections and referendums and constitutional justice.

Council of Europe Publishing

Council of Europe Publishing is the Council of Europe's official publisher and this website is its online bookshop. It provides a full catalogue of priced CoE publications, printed and electronic, from the last ten years. Titles are arranged under the following headings: Committee of Ministers, Parliamentary Assembly, Congress, Human Rights, Law, Health, Society, Environment, Population, Local and Regional Democracy, Education, Modern languages, Youth, Culture, Sport, Communication, European issues and Non-official languages. Basic and advanced search facilities are available.

GRECO

GRECO is the Group of States Against Corruption, a body set up in 1999 by the Council of Europe to monitor the development, implementation and enforcement of anti-corruption legislation in its member states. The site publishes GRECO's Statute, Rules of Procedure and resolutions, as well as its activity reports and other documents. Information is provided about GRECO's history, structure, member states and current programmes. The site is available in English or French.

European Landscape Convention

The European Landscape Convention is a Council of Europe treaty for the protrection, management and planning of landscapes. It deals with all types of landscape, but also gives special emphasis to landscapes that determine the quality of people's living environment. The Convention was signed by 18 countries on 20 October 2000 in Florence. The full text of the Convention is available on the COE Conventions website, together with an Explanatory Report and status information. All information on CoE sites is available in English and French.

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