BOUZARAS proti Řecku

THIRD SECTION

DECISION

Applications nos. 31408/20 and 46607/22
Sotiris BOUZARAS
against Greece

(see appended table)

The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting on 26 March 2026 as a Committee composed of:

Diana Kovatcheva, President,
Canòlic Mingorance Cairat,
Vasilka Sancin, judges,

and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to the above applications against the Hellenic Republic lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table,

Having regard to the formal declarations accepting a friendly settlement of the cases,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

• FACTS AND PROCEDURE

The list of applications is set out in the appended table.

The applicant was represented by K. Tsitselikis, a lawyer practising in Thessaloniki.

The applicant’s complaints under Article 10 of the Convention concerning the criminal convictions of the applicant for (slanderous) defamation for the publications made in his capacity as journalist, were communicated to the Greek Government (“the Government”).

The Court received the friendly-settlement declarations, signed by the parties, under which the applicant agreed to waive any further claims against Greece in respect of the facts giving rise to these applications, subject to an undertaking by the Government to pay them the amounts detailed in the appended table. These amounts will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the Court’s decision. In the event of failure to pay these amounts within the above-mentioned three-month period, the Government undertake to pay simple interest on them, from the expiry of that period until settlement, at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.

The payment will constitute the final resolution of the cases.

• THE LAW

Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single decision.

The Court takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the Protocols thereto and finds no reasons to justify a continued examination of the applications.

In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the cases out of the list.

For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,

Decides to join the applications;

Decides to strike the applications out of its list of cases in accordance with Article 39 of the Convention.

Done in English and notified in writing on 16 April 2026.

Viktoriya Maradudina Diana Kovatcheva
Acting Deputy Registrar President

APPENDIX

List of applications raising complaints under Article 10 of the Convention

(freedom of expression)

[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicant.

[2] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicant.