Dates: 17 and 28 March 2025 (each participant should attend on one day only, because the two sessions will be the same)
Start and end time: 9:00 – 17:30 CET
Place: Zoom (participants will receive a link)
Number of participants: app. 20 per workshop
Working language: English
Registration deadline: 12 March (after this date, participants will receive a confirmation from ENIL)
Important notice: Due to limited spaces, we expect all participants who register to attend. If you can no longer attend, please inform ENIL. A waiting list will be created if there are too many applications. Training Certificates will be awarded by ENIL to all participants who complete the full day of the training.
Taking legal action to resolve disputes in court, ending with judge’s decision is called litigation. Now, using court cases to solve broader social issues, not just individual legal problems is called strategic litigation.
The LITI-GATE project is a coalition of six organizations dedicated to safeguarding the rights of individuals with intellectual and/or psychosocial disabilities across the European Union.
On 17 and 28 March, the LITI-GATE team is organizing an online training on strategic litigation for disability rights, aimed at persons with disabilities and Disabled People’s Organizations (DPOs). It will provide participants with knowledge and tools to effectively engage in litigation at the European and international levels.
Agenda of the training
Content of the training:
Workshop – See you in court! What is strategic litigation and how to get started? (1h)
| Facilitator: | Mari Siilsalu |
| Activity: | Mari will explain what strategic litigation is and the practical steps for preparing and taking the case to a court. Through case studies and practical exercises, you will learn and discuss how to identify rights violations that might be good for taking legal action and based on these, how to plan the individual steps. |
Workshop – Real-Life Experience with Strategic Litigation (1h)
| Facilitator: | Arpi Avetisyan |
| Activity: | In this session you will learn what impact strategic litigation can have on the individual victim, the community and process of the implementation of judgments. In addition we will look at examples of intersectional discrimination and how to build arguments around this. |
Workshop – Inclusive Communication in Legal Processes (1h)
| Facilitator: | Adela Santos Lavigne |
| Activity: | Legal accessibility is not just an add-on, but a fundamental right. Adela explores how legal professionals can break down barriers, use clear and inclusive communication, and actively involve clients with disabilities in legal processes. Through practical examples and interactive discussions, we highlight key strategies to ensure that every client—regardless of disability—can fully understand, participate in, and navigate the legal system. True justice starts with accessibility. |
Workshop: Victims’ rights in Strategic Litigation (1h)
| Facilitator: | Ann Campbell |
| Activity: | To be added |
Workshop – From Policy to Courtroom: Litigating Against Institutionalization in the EU (1h)
| Facilitators: | Ines Bulic Cojocariu |
| Activity: | Ines will explain how policy advocacy can lead to strategic litigation and in which cases this can be an important tool for Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs) that are not specialised in litigation. She will use the example of ENIL’s long-term work on monitoring how the EU Structural Funds are used and misused by the EU Member States. This work culminated in a case at the General Court in Luxembourg, against the European Commission. The session will provide an opportunity for participants to consider how this applies to their work and other human rights violations against disabled people. |
Workshop: Bridging Knowledge and Advocacy: Human Rights in Participatory Research (1h)
| Facilitator: | María Gómez Carrillo de Castro |
| Activity: | To be added |
What else is included?
- Practical exercises as part of all workshops
- 15 minutes of introduction at the beginning of the day
- 2 breaks for coffee of 15 minutes and a lunch break
- 15 minutes for the evaluation and closing remarks
- Presentation of Training Certificates to all participants
Information on speakers:
ANN CAMPBELL
Bio: Ann Campbell is a human rights lawyer, personal coach and trauma specialist. Since 2005, Ann has worked with clients from marginalised and oppressed populations, conducting advocacy and strategic litigation in Europe, Africa, Asia and at the UN. Her efforts have focused on securing equality and rights for people with psychosocial disability, women, refugees and asylum seekers, and LGBTQIA+ communities. As Litigation Director and subsequently Co-Executive Director at Validity, an international human rights advocacy organisation specialised in the rights of persons with disabilities, Ann lead on several seminal cases at the European Court of Human Rights and before the UN Treaty Bodies. Through her coaching practice, Ann provides one-to-one, non-pathologizing peer support for individuals and for organisational leaders. She also has extensive experience organising and conducting trainings for diverse audiences on trauma, human rights, strategic litigation and related topics.
Ann holds an L.LM in International Human Rights Law from the University of Nottingham, and a Barrister-at-Law degree from the Honourable Society of King’s Inns in Ireland. She is a certified coach with the International Association of Trauma Recovery Coaching and a certified Advanced Trauma Advocate with the Global Trauma Institute.
MARÍA GÓMEZ CARRILLO DE CASTRO
Bio: María is a Spanish lawyer with a background in political sciences and parliamentary law. She is currently finishing her PhD in social policy on human rights based participatory research. As part of this research, she worked with a group of autistic women and a group of persons with intellectual disabilities to conduct two research projects under their lead.
Prior to her PhD, she worked extensively with people with intellectual disabilities in Spain, delivering rights and advocacy trainings and has conducted research on disability-based deprivation of liberty and supporting defendants in criminal settings. Her research interests lie in participation, accessibility, legal capacity and assisting people with disabilities in legal procedures.
ARPI AVETISYAN
Bio: Arpi is an international human rights lawyer specialising in strategic litigation. She advises NGOs and legal professionals on their strategic litigation efforts ensuring access to justice. Arpi brings over 20 years hands-on experience in research, advocacy, capacity development and strategic litigation before the European Court of Human Rights, the European Court of Justice and UN human rights treaty bodies.
MARI SIILSALU
Bio: Mari Siilsalu – legal advisor in disability rights law, Independent Living Institute, Sweden
Mari was born and raised in Estonia where she was active in the Estonian Independent Living movement. Through that work, she gained experience working with project activities, counseling and campaigning for the right to independent living for disabled people. She moved to Sweden in 2013, when she began her work at the European Network on Independent Living (ENIL).
At the Independent Living Institute, she has worked as an analyst, legal advisor and educator within the framework of various projects at the Independent Living Institute.
INES BULIC COJOCARIU
Bio: Ines Bulić Cojocariu is the Director of the European Network on Independent Living (ENIL) and a disability rights consultant, with expertise in the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the related laws and policies at the European level. Since 2005, when she was appointed the Coordinator of the European Coalition for Community Living (ECCL), her work has focused on the right to independent living, deinstitutionalisation and the use of European Union funds in relation to persons with disabilities. She has written or contributed to a number of publications, policy papers and manuals on these topics, and regularly delivers training on how to move away from institutional care to living in the community, and on Article 19 CRPD.
ADELA SANTOS LAVIGNE
Bio: Adela Santos Lavigne is a lawyer and accessibility expert based in Málaga, Spain. She is a Project Coordinator at the European Network on Independent Living (ENIL), where she focuses on strategic litigation, communication, and advocacy related to disability rights, deinstitutionalization, and independent living. In addition to her work at ENIL, she runs her own legal practice.
Adela is also an active member of CEPAMA, the Spanish Committee of Autistic Women. At ENIL, she contributes to the LITI-GATE project, which focuses on access to justice for persons with disabilities, using strategic litigation as a tool to drive policy change. She is passionate about making legal and policy frameworks more accessible and ensuring the full participation of persons with disabilities in decision-making processes.
With a strong background in training and capacity-building, Adela has conducted sessions for diverse audiences, including legal professionals, policymakers, and organizations of persons with disabilities. She is committed to fostering a legal environment that upholds the rights and dignity of all individuals, particularly through strategic litigation and legal capacity advocacy.