SECOND SECTION

DECISION

Application no. 35951/14 Mileta KOVAČEVIĆ and Dragana KOVAČEVIĆ against Serbia

The European Court of Human Rights (Second Section), sitting on 17 June 2021 as a Committee composed of:

Pauliine Koskelo , President, Branko Lubarda, Marko Bošnjak , judges,

and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to the above application lodged on 8 May 2014 ,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

FACTS AND PROCEDURE

The applicants, Mr Mileta Kovačević and Ms Dragana Kovačević , were born in 1966 and 1970, respectively.

They were represented by Mr M. Nešković , a lawyer practising in Gornji Milanovac .

The applicants complained that their children, who had been born in a State-run hospital, were, or may well have been, abducted and unlawfully adopted by another family immediately upon their birth. Those complaints were communicated to the Serbian Government (“the Government”) under Articles 8 and 13 of the Convention.

The Government submitted observations on the admissibility and merits. On 13 January 2020 these observations were forwarded to the applicants’ representative, through the Court’s Electronic Communications Service (“ eComms ”), and he was invited to submit written observations in reply together with any claims for just satisfaction. On 6 February 2020 the applicants’ lawyer downloaded the Registry’s letter of 13 January 2020.

No reply having been received, by letter dated 18 June 2020 the applicants’ lawyer was notified, once again through eComms , that the period allowed for submission of the said observations and just satisfaction claims had expired on 24 February 2020 and that no extension of time had been requested. The lawyer’s attention was also drawn to Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention, which provides that the Court may strike an application out of its list of cases where the circumstances lead to the conclusion that the applicant does not intend to pursue the application. The lawyer downloaded the letter. However, no response has been received by the Registry.

THE LAW

In the light of the foregoing, and in the absence of any special circumstances regarding respect for the rights guaranteed by the Convention and the Protocols thereto, the Court, in accordance with Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention, considers that it is no longer justified to continue the examination of the application.

Accordingly, the case should be struck out of the list.

For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,

Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases.

Done in English and notified in writing on 8 July 2021 .

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Viktoriya Maradudina Pauliine Koskelo Acting Deputy Registrar President