Bărbulescu v. Romania (Eur. Ct. H.R.)

Abstract

On September 5, 2017, a decision of the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Bărbulescu v. Romania (Bărbulescu) helped define the boundaries regarding employee privacy in the European workplace. The Bărbulescu decision held that a Romanian employee's legally protected right to privacy was violated when his employer monitored personal messages he sent from a company account, reversing a previous decision by the ECHR in this case that had expanded employers' rights to monitor employees.