THIRD SECTION

DECISION

Application no. 71446/11 Denis Yakovlevich AKIMOV against Russia

The European Court of Human Rights, sitting on 23 November 2021 as a Committee composed of:

Peeter Roosma, President, Dmitry Dedov, Andreas Zünd, judges, and Olga Chernishova, Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to:

the application (no. 71446/11) against Russia lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on 24 October 2011 by a Russian national, Mr Denis Yakovlevich Akimov, who was born in 1987 and is detained in Tver (“the applicant”) who was represented by Mr S.V. Solomonov, a lawyer practising in St Petersburg;

the decision to give notice of the complaint concerning the failure of the domestic courts to ensure effective legal representation of the applicant during appeal hearing in the criminal proceedings against him to the Russian Government (“the Government”), represented Mr M. Galperin, the then Representative of the Russian Federation to the European Court of Human Rights, and lately by Mr M. Vinogradov, his successor in this office;

the Government’s observations;

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

SUBJECT-MATTER OF THE CASE

1. By the judgment of the Leningrad Regional Court of 21 January 2011 the applicant, Mr Akimov, was found guilty of aggravated murder and trespass and sentenced to fifteen years and three months of imprisonment. On 25 April 2011 the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation examined the appeal and upheld the applicant’s conviction. According to the applicant, the examination of the appeal took place in the absence of his counsel S. The applicant, relying on Article 6 §§ 1 and 3 (c) complained about lack of legal representation at the appeal hearing.

2. The Government submitted the case-file documents confirming that that the applicant had been represented at the appeal hearing by a State ‑ appointed lawyer, to which the applicant had agreed.

THE COURT’S ASSESSMENT

3. In the light of the documents provided by the Government and in view of the fact that the applicant did not submit any comments in this connection, the Court finds that the applicant was provided with an effective legal representation by the State-appointed lawyer. Accordingly, the applicant’s complaint is manifestly ill-founded and must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 §§ 3 (a) and 4 of the Convention.

For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,

Declares the application inadmissible.

Done in English and notified in writing on 16 December 2021.

{signature_p_2}

Olga Chernishova Peeter Roosma Deputy Registrar President