FOURTH SECTION

DECISION

Application no. 45067/18 R.B. and N.R. against the Netherlands

The European Court of Human Rights (Fourth Section), sitting on 3 September 2020 as a Committee composed of:

Stéphanie Mourou-Vikström, President, Georges Ravarani, Jolien Schukking, judges, and Liv Tigerstedt, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to the above application lodged on 16 September 2018,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

FACTS AND PROCEDURE

The applicants, Mr R.B. and Ms N.R., are Dutch nationals, who were born in 1945 and 1958 respectively. The President granted the applicants’ request for their identity not to be disclosed to the public (Rule 47 § 4 of the Rules of Court). They were represented before the Court by Ms J. Kuijper, a lawyer practising in Amsterdam.

The applicants’ complaints under Articles 2 and 13 of the Convention, concerning an allegedly excessive use of force by police which resulted in the death of their son and the lack of an effective official investigation, were communicated to the Dutch Government (“the Government”).

On 15 July 2020 both the Government and the applicants’ representative informed the Court that the parties had reached a friendly settlement. Moreover, the terms of the settlement – which were not made known to the Court as the applicants preferred that they remained confidential – led the applicants to want to withdraw their application.

THE LAW

The Court notes that as a result of the friendly settlement concluded between the parties, the applicants do not intend to pursue their application. In the absence of any indication whatsoever that the applicants have been subjected to any form of pressure from the authorities to withdraw their complaints (see, mutatis mutandis , Sisojeva and Others v. Latvia (striking out) [GC], no. 60654/00, § 115, ECHR 2007-I), or of any other special circumstances regarding respect for the rights guaranteed by the Convention or its Protocols, the Court, in accordance with Article 37 § 1 (a) and in fine of the Convention, considers that it is no longer justified to continue the 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,

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

Done in English and notified in writing on 24 September 2020.

Liv Tigerstedt Stéphanie Mourou-Vikström Acting Deputy Registrar President