On 27 June 2022, the ECtHR issued a new factsheet on protection of property with an overview of its case law in this context. The ECHR enshrines the principle of the peaceful enjoyment of one’s property and makes its deprivation conditional, providing protection against unjustified interference by the state. According to the ECtHR case-law, attention must be paid to maintaining a fair balance between the competing interests of the individual and those of the community as a whole.

The factsheet provides examples of general and specific measures reported by States regarding the implementation of ECtHR judgments, in particular:

• The protection of one’s possessions such as pensions, social welfare benefits, bank deposits, intellectual property;
• The access to justice and enforcement of property-related judicial decisions awarding damages;
• The restitution of property in the context of nationalisations and expropriations, as well as compensation for loss of one’s property;
• The control of use of property through: legal control of tenancies, business licences, urban planning and granting of building permits, bankruptcy, insolvency and/or enforcement proceedings, seizure and confiscation, taxation, reforestation, and hunting-related regulations.