Information Note on the Court’s case-law 44

July 2002

Slaviček v. Croatia (dec.) - 20862/02

Decision 4.7.2002 [Section I]

Article 35

Article 35-1

Exhaustion of domestic remedies

Failure to exhaust new constitutional remedy concerning length of proceedings: inadmissible

In 1992 the applicant lent sums of money to S.H. and to two companies, which all failed to pay him back in due time. In October 1993 he filed two separate sets of proceedings against each of the two companies. In 1994 he started proceedings against S.H. All three sets of proceedings remain pending.

Inadmissible under Article 6 § 1:  As to whether the applicant has exhausted domestic remedies, accord ing to section 63 of the 2002 Constitutional Act on the Constitutional Court, the Constitutional Court must examine a constitutional complaint even before all legal remedies have been exhausted in cases where a competent court has not decided within a reas onable time a claim concerning the applicant’s right and obligations, or a criminal charge against him. This new provision removed the obstacles that were decisive when the Court found in the Horvat v. Croatia judgment (no. 51585/99, judgment of 26 July 20 01) that former section 59 § 4, now replaced by section 63, did not comply with all the requirements to constitute an effective remedy in respect of the length of proceedings. Although the Constitutional Court has not yet issued any decision following the introduction of this new remedy, the wording of section 63 is clear and indicates that it is specifically designed to address the issue of the excessive length of proceedings before the domestic courts. According to the 2002 Act, any person who considers t hat the proceedings concerning the determination of his civil rights and obligations or a criminal charge against him have exceeded a reasonable time may file a constitutional complaint. The Constitutional Court must examine such a complaint and if it find s it well-founded it must set a time-limit for deciding the case on the merits and it shall also award compensation for the excessive length of proceedings. This was therefore a remedy which the applicant should have exhausted. While the relevant Act was a dopted by Parliament on 15 March 2002 and was published in the Official Gazette on 22 March 2002, the present application was introduced before the Court on 10 May 2002: non-exhaustion.

© Council of Europe/European Court of Human Rights This summary by th e Registry does not bind the Court.

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