The Right to Defence in Digital Criminal Justice: Technology, Evidence and Fair Trial Safeguards conference will take place on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, at the European Public Law Organization (EPLO) Rome Office, bringing together legal practitioners, academics, prosecutors, and experts from across Europe to examine the challenges posed by digital technologies to criminal justice systems.
Jointly organised by the European Public Law Organization (EPLO) and the Unione delle Camere Penali Italiane (UCPI), the event will explore critical issues at the intersection of criminal procedure, digital evidence, encryption, artificial intelligence, surveillance technologies, and fundamental rights.
The conference will open with remarks by Prof. Bernardo Giorgio Mattarella, Director of the EPLO Rome Office, and Avv. Francesco Petrelli, President of UCPI.
Through three thematic panels, speakers from across Europe and beyond will address topics including encrypted communications as criminal evidence, remote criminal proceedings, cross-border digital evidence, digital surveillance, artificial intelligence in criminal investigations, and the protection of fair trial guarantees in an increasingly digital environment.
Among the distinguished contributors are representatives of the European Criminal Bar Association (ECBA), leading criminal defence lawyers, academics specialising in digital criminal procedure, and Dr. Ahmed Hassaan, Chief Prosecutor at the Office of the Attorney General of Egypt.
The event aims to foster dialogue on how technological innovation is reshaping criminal justice while ensuring that procedural safeguards, equality of arms, and the right to an effective defence remain at the centre of legal practice and policy development.
Event Details
Date: 4 November 2026
Time: 10:00-15:45
Venue: EPLO Rome Office, Piazza di Porta Portese 6, Rome
Organisers: European Public Law Organization (EPLO) & Unione delle Camere Penali Italiane (UCPI)
