The Osman Test in the Context of Domestic Abuse: Y and Others v Bulgaria

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has now built up a substantial body of jurisprudence on the issue of domestic abuse. However, difficulties arose regarding the application of the Osman test in this context. In its landmark judgment of 15 June 2021 in Kurt v Austria, the Grand Chamber set out in detail a number of principles which should be applied in cases of domestic abuse, and in particular clarified the way in which the Osman test should be applied in such cases. The Court’s recent judgment of 22 March 2022 in Y and Others v Bulgaria constitutes a clear demonstration of the importance of the principles laid down by the Grand Chamber in Kurt for the jurisprudence of the ECtHR on domestic abuse.