Abstract

On 25 June 2020, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights delivered its judgement in S.M. v. Croatia case regarding the violation of Article 4 of the European Convention on human rights. The case, concerning a young woman who was physically and psychologically forced into prostitution, involved a number of issues about the material scope of Art. 4 ECHR, the definition of human trafficking and the inclusion of ‘exploitation of prostitution’ in the ECHR. This article analyses the judgement and endorses the opportunity of a ‘teleological interpretation’ vis-à-vis contemporary forms of slavery.