The conference was organised by the Catholic University of Lille and the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and ELIL is really proud to have been part of this initiative. This first edition took place on April 3rd and 4th, bringing together academics, legal practitioners and students to explore the challenges facing asylum seekers today.
As our Managing Director put it: "When things seem very challenging and dire from an asylum law perspective, it is extremely heartening to see that people are thinking about these issues and that the next generation of lawyers is taking them on. The legal clinic and this partnership show what academics and NGOs can do in times of institutional crisis, trying to provide answers and seeing what research can bring."
The conference began with remarks from Rebecca-Emmanuela Papadopoulou (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens), Sarah Durelle Marc (Université Catholique de Lille), and our Managing Director, Phil Worthington. Phil shared ELIL’s journey, how we started as a crisis response, waiting for the state to step in, yet nearly ten years later, asylum seekers in Greece still lack access to legal assistance for their first asylum interview. He highlighted how ELIL has adapted to the ongoing erosion of legal rights.
Advocate General Andrea Biondi (Court of Justice of the EU) then delivered a keynote speech on the role of legal clinics in improving access to justice for asylum seekers.
The conference hosted three panels exploring the evolving challenges in asylum law:
Right to Asylum in Times of Crisis: Experts discussed rule-of-law backsliding, the EU’s new solidarity mechanism, and Frontex’s accountability before the Court of Justice of the EU.
Challenges at the Border: ELIL’s legal coordinators, Chrysoula and Christina, shared insights on the hurdles asylum seekers face in Greece, from rushed procedures to legal limbo due to geographic restrictions. Other speakers examined border closures in Poland, Latvia, and Lithuania, protection denial in Hungary, and access to asylum in France.
Ending Child Immigration Detention: Students from the legal clinic in Lille presented research on immigration detention, focusing on children’s rights and alternative approaches. Their work will contribute to ELIL’s efforts in the field.
Five students from the conference will be joining ELIL as legal assistants (three in Athens and two in Lesvos) and we look forward to seeing how this collaboration develops.
A huge thank you to the organisers, participants, and students who made this conference a success. See you next year!