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The right to privacy is one of the fundamental human rights, as it encompasses a wide range of relationships related to the private life of the individual. Starting with the right to family life and the right to private life, many institutions that seem very important nowadays, such as data protection, find their place and are part of the right to privacy. Nevertheless, the right to privacy is one of the relative rights protected by the European Convention, which means that it can be derogated in specific cases and under certain conditions. The purpose of this article is to examine the conditions set out in the European Convention for the derogation of right to privacy and to analyse the practice of the European Court of Human Rights. This Court has, in its jurisprudence, restrictively derogated the right to privacy, with fulfilling three conditions: prescription by law, necessary in a democratic society and achieving certain legitimate aim. One of the examples of the possibility of its restriction is the epidemic of the Covid-19 virus. Considering that numerous countries around the world have restricted the right to privacy, the question is whether and to what extent the restriction was in accordance with prescribed conditions for derogation of this right.

The jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the EU affects the understanding and protection of human rights in the European Union, including the right to property. Human rights in the European Union are regulated by the Charter of Fundamental Human Rights, and the standards established by the European Convention on Human Rights and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights are also taken into account. This paper provides an overview of how the right to property is defined and how it was applied in certain cases before the Court of Justice of the EU, concretely, in relation to the fact whether a certain limitation of this human right is unlawful. In this way, an analysis of the procedure in which the proportionality test is applied in practice was carried out - that is, the balancing between general and individual interest, when it comes to the unrestricted enjoyment of the right to property. Some of the presented cases are atypical in terms of their facts and the legal context in which the selected decisions were given. It is precisely for this reason that the paper presents the evolving dimension of the Union law, that is, the legally creative and interpretive role of the Court of Justice of the EU.

The ne bis in idem principle as one of the most established legal rules, has been widely regulated by sources of national and International Law. By its very nature, it protects individuals from double punishment for the same act, regardless of its classification as a misdemeanor, criminal offence etc. Different legal traditions, together with a purely national criminal jurisdiction, led to a certain divergency among states. Moreover, such a problem has existed for a long time in the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. However, regulation of this principle in the EU Law brought upon some novelties. In the end of 20th century and in the beginning of 21st century there was the process of a more detailed defining of conditions for the application of ne bis in idem principle. In parallel with that process, the European Court of Justice delivered its judgments, which clarified practical dilemmas of national courts in this particular field of law. These judgments resulted from the requests for preliminary ruling referred by national courts. In that regard, many important precedents have been adjudicated, defining essential elements for implementation of prohibition of double punishment, as for example concept of the 'same act'. On the basis of the analysis of the legal framework and relevant jurisprudence of the ECJ, we come to the conclusion that the principle ne bis in idem in the EU Law system has been interpreted extensively and this fact significantly impacts on the overcoming of formalities contained in national legal systems, which can bring about double punishment for the same act.

In the light of current global tendencies and a concern for the issue of environmental protection, this paper aims to provide an analysis of most important issues in this field, within the EU Law. Elements of the right to a healthy environment are systematically regulated in the communitarian law. First, there is a long-standing normative activity of these issues, which in the last two years resulted in the adoption of new strategic documents. Second, jurisprudence of the ECJ has also followed development of the legislation, as well as circumstances in which those documents have been applied. Therefore, special attention is drawn to the newly-adopted general acts, created with long-term aims, and based on normative and factual experience over past decades. Its purpose is to achieve sustainable development goals in a multidimensional manner. Furthermore, an analysis of selected judgments of the ECJ shows the efficiency in application of relevant regulations and directives. Moreover, the interpretation of the EU law is of special importance, where the ECJ has a significant role. With regard to the universal character of this topic, the paper provides a short overview of the relevant legal framework in the USA, Norway and Serbia. Negotiations on the joining the EU imply the harmonization of domestic law with the standards of the communitarian law. By observing the Serbian environmental legal framework, it could be said that there is determination and concrete measures in the process of harmonization. On the basis of previously mentioned issues, authors structured the paper and aspects of the research contained therein, followed by the conclusions provided in the final chapter.

Inadequate disposal of waste in landfills produces harmful effects on the environment and human health. In order to prevent or reduce them to a minimum, states devise alternative approaches to waste management and / or prescribe technical requirements for landfilling. In the European Union the Landfill Directive has been adopted, which aims to ensure the gradual reduction of amount of waste disposed in landfills, especially those suitable for recycling or other disposal operations, as well as to provide for measures, procedures and guidelines to prevent or minimize the adverse effects of landfills on the environment, by stipulating strict operational and technical requirements for waste and landfills. The subject of this paper is the analysis of the content of the Directive and its application, with special reference to the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union in proceedings against Member States that have not complied with the obligations set out in this Directive.

Air pollution in urban areas is currently one of the major risks to the environment and human health. Directives at the level of the European Union require Member States to monitor and control the concentration of certain pollutants in the air, especially in urban areas. However, despite the fact that there is a legal framework for controlling the concentration of air pollutants, the data show that a number of Member States fail to meet air quality standards, and thus to protect the health of the population. This paper presents individual air quality standards in urban areas at the level of the European Union and analyzes the application of these standards through several examples. In addition, the multiple importance of the control system for the concentration of certain air pollutants in urban areas was pointed out, in terms of the impact of polluted air on human behavior and the growth of crime rates.

The European Court of Human Rights is considered as the most significant and most effective system of supervision in the field of international protection of human rights. It involves a supranational mechanism which enables the individuals to achieve their right on the international level. This mechanism of individual applications should overcome the discrepancy between the goals of international protection of human rights and execution of human rights norms at the state and local level. Successful and fast implementation of its judgments on the national level is of great importance for the Court, because the credibility and legitimacy of this system of protection depends on it. This paper will present the most significant aspects of execution and implementation of the judgments of the Court. The role of certain organs of the Council of Europe: Committee of Ministers, Parliamentary Assembly and the Court, in the procedure of execution of judgments, will be analyzed. Additionally, there will be presented the various manners in which the judgments are implemented and executed.

The right of an individual to the environmental protection encompasses material and procedural aspects that correspond to certain obligations of states, in terms of international environmental law. The Aarhus Convention, as an international treaty guaranteeing certain procedural aspects of environmental rights, is an integral part of the legal order of the European Union. In addition, a number of regulations have been adopted at the level of the European Union in order to comply its law with the provisions of the Convention. The aim of this paper is to review the control mechanisms at the European Union level in the application of regulations governing the procedural aspects of environmental rights, which are guaranteed by the Aarhus Convention.

This paper deals with the issue of the protection of persons from domestic violence in the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. It was not mentioned in the European Convention on Human Rights, but in the practice of the Court, there appeared a significant number of cases in which it stated that there had been violations of specific articles of the Convention in relation to domestic violence. In a large number of cases, the state did not prevent domestic violence that led to a violation of the right to life, or led to inhuman or degrading treatment. Also, domestic violence often leads to a violation of the right to respect for private and family life. The state is obliged to protect all persons under its jurisdiction when there is a reasonable suspicion that their rights may be violated. The Council of Europe's Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence is an important instrument that regulates this issue and is a step forward in the protection of victims of domestic violence.

Over the past few decades, there has been significant concern about the impact of waste on the environment, and accordingly, the former European Communities and the European Union have adopted a number of environmental legislation. Inadequate waste management has led to numerous cases of pollution of land and groundwater, which jeopardized the natural functioning of the ecosystem and the health of the population exposed to pollution. The EU Sustainable Development Strategy identifies the prevention of waste generation and proper management of it as one of its main priorities. The need for waste management is clearly emphasized, in order tominimize the risk of endangering the lives and health of people and the environment. The aim of this paper is to present the most important EU legislationon waste management, as well as to analyse relevant case law of Court of Justice of European Union.

The right to property is regulated by Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 to the European Convention on Human Rights. The basic aim of this article of the Convention is to protect every person from unlawful interference by the state in the peaceful enjoyment of property. Such a negative obligation includes, for example, the prohibition of expropriation of property, as well as the planning of restrictions or the temporary seizure of property. Any interference by a public authority with the right to peaceful enjoyment of property must be lawful, that is, it must have a basis in domestic law, which should be sufficiently precise and predictable. Also, the interference with the right to property must follow a legitimate aim. It is only permitted in the public interest, and control of the use of property is carried out in accordance with the general interest. The interests of an individual affected by a measure of violation of the right to property should be balanced with the interests of the general public. The interference should not represent an excessive or disproportionate burden on the individual. It is necessary for the state to introduce control measures that include determination whether a measure is appropriate for achieving its goal and whether it is proportionate. Interference in property rights does not constitute a violation of Protocol 1 to the Convention if the owner receives the appropriate compensation for damages, which constitutes a fair satisfaction.

This paper deals with the protection of the river Danube on international level. The most important legal act in this field is the Convention on cooperation for the protection and sustainable use of the Danube river, which was adopted in Sofia in 1994. It stipulates a system of supervision and cooperation among states. The Contracting Parties to the Convention exchange the available information on the general conditions of the riverine environment within the catchment area of the Danube River, experience gained in the application and operation of the best available techniques and results of research and development, emission and monitoring data, measures taken and planned to be taken to prevent, control and reduce transboundary impact and other issues. The Convention established International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River which deals with the realization of the aims and provisions of this Convention. It elaborates proposals and recommendations addressed to the Contracting Parties.

Within the European Union, as a regional international organization, environmental protection has been recognized as one of the significant objectives. EU law on environmental protection is adopted in the form of directives, which Member States are obliged to adequately transfer into their national legislation and implement, effectively and in timely manner, by adopting and implementing appropriate measures. In case Member States fail to comply with the above duties, the role of the European Commission and the Court of Justice of the European Union is of a great importance. This paperwork presents randomly selected examples of the activities of the aforementioned bodies of the European Union in order to show the seriousness with which the implementation of EU law on environmental protection in member states is being monitored.

This article represents the overview of certain new trends in international environmental protection. The results of the research are organized in several sections: international legal sources (international agreements, international legal principles, soft law), human rights (Aarhus Convention, human rights in relation to climate change, right to water), procedural mechanisms available for the protection of environment (ICJ, CJEU, international procedures available to individuals, international investment arbitration, national courts). The article focuses not only on new developments which illustrate innovative approaches to environmental protection but also detects a number of problems in relation to their effective implementation and enforcement.

This paper deals with certain admissibility criteria of an individual application before the European Court of Human Rights. This is one of the most important issues in the Court's practice and it represents a necessary condition for deciding on the merits of submitted applications. The period of six months for submitting the application is introduced in order to preserve legal certainty but also it serves for the interests of states because it prevents that final domestic decisions are questioned indefinitely. The Court can declare each application inadmissible if it considers that the applicant has not suffered a significant disadvantage, unless respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the Protocols requires an examination of the application. Also, the application cannot be rejected on this ground if the case has not been duly considered by a domestic tribunal. Protocol No. 15 to the Convention, which has not yet entered into force, envisages the deletion of this last possibility and also reducing the period for submitting the application from six to four months.

Territorial disputes in international law are resolved by peaceful means, like negotiations, mediation, conciliation, arbitration and in the procedure at the International Court of Justice. Borders between states are, in practice, determined on the basis of the uti possidetis iuris principle and principle of effective control. Historical arguments for territorial acquisition are not generally accepted, because changes of borders have to be a result of democratically expressed will of states. Also, the right of people for self-determination was used in the process of decolonization for creating new states but it has emerged in later years like in the case of East Timor, as a legal title for gaining independence. Apart from the process of decolonization, the right to self-determination is rather unclear and disputable regarding its scope and content. Traditional modes of territorial acquisition still have decisive role in international law. Almost all states rely on them in order to substantiate their claims for possession of certain territories. Therefore, international courts and arbitrations cannot ignore them.

The rules on environmental protection were quite late included in the founding treaties of the former European Communities. After Single European Act entered into force, there was legal basis for the secondary legislation of the European Community and later European Union. In the practice of the Court of Justice of the European Communities and later Court of Justice of the European Union, the issue of environmental protection has been discussed in several important cases. The Court has established which legal basis is appropriate for enacting regulations and directives related to environment. The case law on relation between the freedom of movement of goods and principle of environmental protection is of special importance because it is necessary to find a balance between these two principles. The judgment in the case of 'Danish bottles' is significant because it has confirmed that environmental protection is one of the primary objectives of the Community. Moreover, it has added one obligatory requirement to the list of exceptions from the freedom of movement of goods, which was mentioned in the case Cassis de Dijon. The ECJ has also discussed principles of environmental protection because by developing this area they were established and now have a significant influence on other EU policies.

This paper deals with the analysis of the creation of the EU Water Framework Directive and its implementation in the jurisprudence of the ECJ. It represents one of the most important acts in the field of environmental protection in the European Union. Its provisions are related to the establishment of the objectives of the environment quality, for surface waters and groundwater, for regulation of disposal of dangerous substances in those waters or for monitoring and sampling of waters. The Directive extends the objectives of environmental protection over the existing legislation of the EU and it includes and extends the criteria for the control of waste disposal and provides a comprehensive framework for control and reporting in this field. The Directive envisages that Member States would provide the establishment of registers of all areas lying within each river basin which have been designated as requiring special protection under specific EU legislation for the protection of their surface water and groundwater or for the conservation of habitats and species directly depending on water. In order to establish a coherent and comprehensive overview of water status, Member States should provide the establishment of programmes for the monitoring of water status within each river basin district. Monitoring is needed in order to establish the efficiency of planes of management of river basins and to help in the process of their periodical revisions. The ECJ, in its judgments, has insisted on implementation of the Directive although not excessively formalistic. Also, its jurisprudence is important for interpretation of certain standards introduced by the Directive.

This paper deals with the issue of territorial disputes settlement in international arbitrations. The arbitration represents an efficient way of determining state borders, together with diplomatic means of dispute resolution and procedure before the International Court of Justice. Parties in a dispute choose arbiters, rules of procedure and commit themselves to accept and implement arbitration award, which is based on international law. States can create an ad hoc tribunal or they can decide to resolve the dispute before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. In arbitration practice there were cases of successful arbitrations, especially in situations when a dispute was primarily factual and when major economic and political interests were not involved.

This paper analysis international regulation of the precautionary principle as one of environmental principles. This principle envisages that when there are threats of serious and irreparable harm, as a consequence of certain economic activity, the lack of scientific evidence and full certainty cannot be used as a reason for postponing efficient measures for preventing environmental harm. From economic point of view, the application of precautionary principle is problematic, because it creates larger responsibility for those who create possible risks, comparing to the previous period. The precautionary principle can be found in numerous international treaties in this field, which regulate it in a very similar manner. There is no consensus in doctrine whether this principle has reached the level of international customary law, because it was interpreted differently and it was not accepted by large number of countries in their national legislations. It represents a developing concept which is consisted of changing positions on adequate roles of science, economy, politics and law in the field of environmental protection. This principle has been discussed in several cases before International Court of Justice and International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.

This paper deals with the issue of jurisdiction of international courts and tribunals for resolving disputes in the field of environmental protection. In the last few decades there was intense activity of states in the regulation of this field and in achieving this goal numerous international treaties have been concluded. In the cases of their violations there should be an international forum which would resolve this kind of disputes. In this moment there are some courts, tribunals and arbitrations which could resolve environmental disputes. However, these are not specialized courts but under their general competencies they can deal with these disputes. The problem is that States have to accept their jurisdiction, which means that jurisdiction is not compulsory. Also, the private entities do not have the right to access these instances. Courts and committees for the protection of human rights have their role in environmental protection. The Court of Justice of the EU has made a significant progress in enforcing environmental rules, due to its specific position and competencies given to it by the founding treaties of the European Union. The shortcomings of the existing mechanisms for dispute resolution could be avoided by creating a specialized International Court for Environment, but the procedure for its creation is still in progress and it is uncertain whether it will be established or not.

This paper deals with international rules which are applicable in the cases of maritime delimitation. The importance of sea and its resources incited the states to regulate their boundaries in international agreements. In the situations when it is impossible to reach an agreement on delimitation it is necessary to resolve the dispute. Among other issues, there can be differences regarding the delimitation of territorial sea, continental shelf and exclusive economic zone. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which comprehensively regulates this field contains also certain rules on maritime delimitation. Besides diplomatic means, states concerned can try to resolve the dispute by using the arbitration or judicial means of dispute settlement. The jurisdiction for the dispute settlement have the International Court of Justice and the Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. They usually apply the principle of equidistance but it can be complemented or replaced with additional criteria if there are some special circumstances related to the concrete case. The basic aim in the process of decision making is the achievement of equitable and acceptable solution.

The aim of this paper is to present the regulation of sustainable development on international level. The sustainable development was defined in the middle of 1980s and from that moment it incites discussions among lawyers about its relevance in international law. Some authors state that it is not a fully formed principle but that it is in the process of creation. The exception from this opinion is the position of the Judge Weeramantry in the Case Gabčíkovo-Nagymaros before the International Court of Justice. Since it is a principle, it does not contain clearly defined rights and duties but it is formulated generally and even vague regarding its legal effects. However, it is a legal principle which, contrary to moral or political principles, has binding legal effects and cannot be neglected. It is contained in several international treaties and it is also a part of the European Union Law. The principle of sustainable development is connected with the precautionary principle, environmental impact assessment and other principles.

The paper deals with the issue of regulation of the right of natural and legal persons to environmental information, in relevant international legal documents. There is a survey of certain international conventions which envisage this right in their field of regulation. The right to access the information is in details regulated in the Aarhus Convention, which comprises significant part of this paper. This kind of regulation of the right to environmental information has performed a significant influence on states and international organizations, which created their domestic and international rules, using the solutions from this Convention. The European Union has enacted a significant number of directives on the right of a public to receive environmental information. The special emphasis will be on the work of the Aarhus Convention's Compliance Committee which has a significant role in supervising and deciding about the compliance with the application of the Convention in its member states.

Legal principles represent general guidelines under which a positive law should be created. The policy of the European Union should contribute to preservation, protection and improving of the quality of environment, health protection, and rational use of natural resources. One of the main objectives of the environmental policy is a sustainable development. The EU institutions should also be governed by principles of subsidiarity and integration, precautionary principle, prevention principle, principle of rectification of damage at source and polluter-pays principle. The European Union tries to find the balance between economic progress and sustainable development and in that process the mentioned environmental principles play an important role.

This paper deals with several territorial disputes, regarding the land delimitation, which were put before the International Court of Justice. The determination of international borders is one of the most important questions of international law and the International Court of Justice represents a very important judicial instance to which states can address if they have an unsolved boundary question with the neighboring states. In the territorial disputes at the Court State Parties were not only states that were formed in the process of decolonisation but also some European states such as, for example, The Netherlands and Belgium. The principles that Court has applied in the process of dispute resolution were different regarding the region and demands of the State Parties. The Court should, firstly, apply international law that means sources envisaged in the Article 38 of its Statute. In its jurisprudence, it used at the first place international treaties, where that was possible, but also the principle of uti possidetis and the principle of effectivity in order to resolve the dispute presented before him by the Parties.

Uti possidetis juris principle was basic rule in determining international borders in the period of decolonization. It was applied in Latin America and Africa, but also at the end of 20th century in the processes of dissolution of USSR, SFRY and Czechoslovakia. Uti possidetis juris principle is based on the presumption that former colonial administrative borders kept stability and territorial integrity. It was undoubtedly connected with the right of self-determination. It keeps the existing borders by preventing secession, but in that way it does not solve the problem of badly determined and disputed borders. The unclear foundations on which the borders were determined can be a source of chaos and indisputes, which was shown n some cases before the International Court of Justice. The dominant theory is that uti possidetis juris principle should be applied with certain limitations, in the period after decolonization as a basis for preserving the territorial integrity of postcolonial states.

Convention on access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters (Aarhus Convention) has been adopted in 1998 and entered into force three years later. It envisages three elements for strengthening democratic procedures in decision-making: access to information, public participation and access to justice. At the first meeting of the Member States the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee was founded. The European Union is a party of the Convention and it has implemented the provisions in its legal order. After entering into force of the Convention, several Directives that regulate these issues in the EU have been enacted. Republic of Serbia has ratified the Convention in 2009 and it is currently in the process of its implementation by involving private subjects in decision-making on environmental issues.