FIRST SECTION

DECISION

Application no. 53158/18 Stevo SVRABIĆ against Croatia

(see appended table)

The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting on 9 September 2021 as a Committee composed of:

Erik Wennerström, President, Lorraine Schembri Orland, Ioannis Ktistakis, judges, and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to the above application lodged on 25 October 2018,

Having regard to the formal declarations accepting a friendly settlement of the case,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

FACTS AND PROCEDURE

The applicant’s details are set out in the appended table.

He was represented by Ms M. Nenadović Timarac , a lawyer practising in Sisak.

The applicant’s complaints under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention concerning the excessive length of civil proceedings were communicated to the Croatian Government (“the Government”).

The applicant died on 21 November 2019, after the institution of the proceedings before the Court. His heirs, Mr Mićo Svrabić and Ms Dragica Stevelić, expressed the wish to pursue the application in his stead. The Government did not object against the locus standi of the heirs in the proceedings.

The Court received the friendly-settlement declarations, signed by the parties, under which the applicant’s heirs agreed to waive any further claims against Croatia in respect of the facts giving rise to this application, and the Government undertook to pay them the amounts detailed in the appended table. These amounts will be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable on the date of payment, and will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the Court’s decision. In the event of failure to pay these amounts within the above-mentioned three ‑ month period, the Government undertake to pay simple interest on them, from the expiry of that period until settlement, at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.

The payment will constitute the final resolution of the case.

THE LAW

The Court firstly takes note of the information regarding the death of the applicant and the wish of his heirs to continue the proceedings in his stead, as well as of the absence of an objection on the Government’s part to their standing. Therefore, the Court considers that the heirs of the applicant, as indicated in the table below, have a legitimate interest in pursuing the application.

The Court takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the Protocols thereto and finds no reasons to justify a continued examination of the application.

In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the case out of the list.

For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,

Holds that the heirs of the applicant, Mr Mićo Svrabić and Ms Dragica Stevelić, have standing to pursue the application in his stead;

Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases in accordance with Article 39 of the Convention.

Done in English and notified in writing on 30 September 2021.

{signature_p_2}

Viktoriya Maradudina Erik Wennerström Acting Deputy Registrar President

APPENDIX

Application raising complaints under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention

(excessive length of civil proceedings)

Application no. Date of introduction

Applicant’s name

Year of birth

Representative’s name and location

Date of receipt of Government’s declaration

Dates of receipt of the declarations of the applicant’s heirs

Amount awarded for non-pecuniary damage

to the applicant’s heirs jointly

(in euros) [1]

Amount awarded for costs and expenses to the applicant’s heirs jointly

(in euros) [2]

53158/18

25/10/2018

Stevo SVRABIĆ

1931Heirs:

Mićo Svrabić

Dragica Stevelić

Nenadović Timarac Milica

Sisak

07/06/2021

20/05/2021

16/07/2021

2,000

250[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicant’s heirs.

[2] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicant’s heirs.