In 2023, in a case in which lawyer Tsvetanka Ivanova – Stoyanova represents an investigative journalist as a defendant, for the first time in Bulgaria the Bulgarian court, in the person of the Sofia District Court, in the rendered judicial act, admits that the so-called ‘Slap-slapping’ – SLAPP – Cases – Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) – Strategic legal proceedings against public participation (more information on Mediapool’s page: https://www.mediapool.bg/balgarskiyat-sad-prizna-za-sashtestvuvaneto-na-delata-shamari-news354901.html). This is an important victory for the Bulgarian civil society, inasmuch as by definition the SLAPP claims do not contain real legal claims against critics, they are filed because they can either temporarily prevent critics from making public statements, or more often, to make critics Spend all your time and resources in protecting SLAPP claims. Such cases against civil organizations and activists, journalists and public figures have as their sole purpose to silence their critical voices and prevent them from publicizing information about vicious practices, corruption, abuse of power, participating in illegal activities jointly between people from the criminal contingent and representatives of the state power with the sole purpose of getting rich with public funds, displacing the state bodies in the performance of functions that are initially state-owned by representatives of criminal structures.
In 2024, in a case for police registration, lawyer Tsvetanka Ivanova – Stoyanova, as a defender of an investigative journalist, managed to achieve the first judicial act of its kind, by which the Bulgarian Court – Sofia City Court, annuls a decision of 14.05.2024 on Ch.N.D. No. 6656/2024 of the Sofia District Court (which, according to the rules of the Bulgarian law, is final and not subject to appeal) on the basis of a European legal framework, which calls into question the automatic application of police registration when indicting and emphasizes the need for evidence of Legality, which the authorities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs must present when they require police registration of citizens, and not arbitrarily do such. (Determination No. 3051 of September 26, 2024 of the Sofia City Court, Criminal Division, 5th appellate panel under the Criminal Code 5124/2024)