LINDÉN ; KONSUMENTFINANS KARLSSON AND LINDÉN AKTIEBOLAG v. SWEDEN
Doc ref: 12836/87 • ECHR ID: 001-45469
Document date: January 8, 1991
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Application No. 12836/87
Åke LINDÉN and
Konsumentfinans Karlsson & Lindén Aktiebolag
against
SWEDEN
REPORT OF THE COMMISSION
(adopted on 8 January 1991)
12836/87
- i -
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ............................................. 1
PART I: STATEMENT OF THE FACTS .......................... 3
PART II: SOLUTION REACHED ................................ 4
INTRODUCTION
1. This Report relates to Application No. 12836/87 introduced
against Sweden by Mr. Åke Lindén and Konsumentfinans Karlsson & Lindén
Aktiebolag on 22 August 1986 under Article 25 of the Convention for
the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. The
application was registered on 3 April 1987.
The Government of Sweden were represented by their Agent, Mr.
Carl Henrik Ehrenkrona, Legal Adviser at the Ministry for Foreign
Affairs, Stockholm.
The applicants were represented by Mr. Jan Axelsson, a lawyer
practising in Stockholm.
2. On 1 October 1990 the European Commission of Human Rights declared
the application admissible insofar as it related to the applicants'
complaint of absence of a court determination (Article 6 para. 1 of
the Convention). The remainder of the application was declared
inadmissible. The Commission then proceeded to carry out its task
under Article 28 para. 1 of the Convention which provides as follows:
"In the event of the Commission accepting a petition
referred to it:
a. it shall, with a view to ascertaining the facts,
undertake together with the representatives of the parties
an examination of the petition and, if need be, an
investigation, for the effective conduct of which the
States concerned shall furnish all necessary facilities,
after an exchange of views with the Commission;
b. it shall at the same time place itself at the
disposal of the parties concerned with a view to securing
a friendly settlement of the matter on the basis of
respect for Human Rights as defined in this Convention."
3. The Commission found that the parties had reached a friendly
settlement of the case and on 8 January 1991 it adopted this Report,
which, in accordance with Article 28 para. 2 of the Convention, is
confined to a brief statement of the facts and of the solution
reached.
The following members of the Commission were present when the
Report was adopted:
MM. C. A. NØRGAARD, President
S. TRECHSEL
E. BUSUTTIL
G. JÖRUNDSSON
A. S. GÖZÜBÜYÜK
A. WEITZEL
J. C. SOYER
H. DANELIUS
Sir Basil HALL
Mr. F. MARTINEZ
Mrs. J. LIDDY
MM. J.-C. GEUS
A.V. ALMEIDA RIBEIRO
M.P. PELLONPÄÄ
PART I
STATEMENT OF THE FACTS
4. The first applicant, Mr. Åke Lindén, is a Swedish citizen,
born in 1945 and resident in Södertälje. He is the joint owner and
director of the second applicant, Konsumentfinans Karlsson & Lindén AB,
a limited liability company incorporated in Sweden.
5. The applicants are owners of residential property in
Södertälje.
6. On 21 September 1981, the Municipal Council (kommun-
fullmäktige) of Södertälje decided as a preliminary measure, pursuant
to the provisions of the Tenement Assignment Act (bostadsanvisnings-
lagen), to declare the whole of central and urban Södertälje a
tenement assignment area within the meaning of that Act. On 2 April
1984 the Municipal Executive Board (kommunstyrelsen) decided, pursuant
to Sections 1 and 2 of the Tenement Assignment Act, to declare those
residential areas which corresponded to four parishes in Södertälje,
with the exception of two districts, to be a tenement assignment area.
7. Under the provisions of the Act, a Municipal Executive Board
is empowered, if it is required for the supply of dwellings within the
municipality, to declare one or several of its residential areas to be
tenement assignment areas and to order that the provisions of the Act
should apply to all or certain tenement rentals in those areas.
Landlords who wish to make vacant flats available for rent are thereby
required to report all vacancies to the municipality which may then
assign the tenement to a new tenant. A landlord may refuse to accept
the tenant assigned to him, but he is obliged to let the tenement to
the municipality if it so requests. The municipality may in turn
sub-let to any person irrespective of any objection on the part of the
landlord. Furthermore, the law on tenancy enables the municipality,
with permission from the Rent Board (hyresnämnden), to transfer the
tenement to the sub-tenant.
8. The second applicant, together with several other property
owners, appealed to the County Administrative Board (länsstyrelsen) of
the Stockholm County. On 27 March 1985 the County Administrative Board
found that the conditions for a tenement assignment area under the
Tenement Assignment Act were fulfilled, but decided that houses with
less than six flats should be exempted.
9. On 25 February 1986, the first applicant bought a number of
residential properties which, as a result of the above decisions, were
subject to the provisions of the Tenement Assignment Act.
10. On 13 March 1986, the Government rejected an appeal against the
decision of the County Administrative Board which had been brought,
inter alia, by the second applicant.
11. Before the Commission the applicants complained that they
could not have the decision, which made their properties part of a
tenement assignment area, examined by a court, contrary to Article 6
para. 1 of the Convention.
PART II
SOLUTION REACHED
12. Following its decision on the admissibility of the
application, the Commission placed itself at the disposal of the
parties with a view to securing a friendly settlement in accordance
with Article 28 para. 1 (b) of the Convention and invited the parties
to submit any proposals they wished to make.
13. Following an exchange of letters between the parties the Agent
of the Government, by letter of 6 December 1990, submitted the
following agreement which had been reached between the applicants and
the Government, and which had been approved by the Government on
29 November 1990.
"SETTLEMENT
On 1 October 1990 the European Commission of Human Rights
decided to declare admissible application No. 12836/87
lodged by Mr. Åke Lindén and Konsumentfinans Karlsson & Lindén AB
against Sweden.
The Government and the applicants have now reached the
following friendly settlement on the basis of respect for
Human Rights as defined in the Convention in order to
terminate the proceedings before the Commission.
a) The Government will pay the sum of SEK 10.000 to
each of the applicants.
b) The Government will pay the applicants' legal costs
in the amount of SEK 34.000.
c) The applicants declare that they have no further
claims in the matter.
This settlement is dependent upon the formal approval of the
Government.
Stockholm, 19 November 1990 Stockholm, 20 November 1990
(signed) (signed)
Carl Henrik Ehrenkrona Jan Axelsson
Agent of the Swedish Government Counsel for the applicants"
12. The Commission, at its session on 8 January 1991, noted that
the parties had reached an agreement regarding the terms of a
settlement. The Commission further found, having regard to Article 28
para. 1 (b) of the Convention, that the friendly settlement had been
secured on the basis of respect for Human Rights as defined in the
Convention.
13. For these reasons, the Commission adopted this Report.
Secretary to the Commission President of the Commission
(H.C. KRÜGER) (C.A. NØRGAARD)
LEXI - AI Legal Assistant
