Interim Resolution CM /ResDH(2007)74

on excessively lengthy proceedings in Greek administrative courts and the lack of an effective domestic remedy

(Adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 6 June 2007, at the 997th meeting of the Ministers ' Deputies)

The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 46, paragraph 2, of the Convention for the P rotection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which provides that the Committee supervises the execution of final judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (hereinafter referred to as “the Convention” and “the Court”),

Having regard to the large number of judgments of the Court finding Greece in violation of Article 6, paragraph 1, of the Convention on account of the excessive length of judicial proceedings before administrative courts, in particular before the Supreme Administrative Court (Council of State) (see Manios group of cases in Appendix to this resolution);

Having regard to the fact that in many of the above cases as well as in cases concerning civil courts (see the Konti-Arvaniti group in Appendix), the Court also found that there had been a violation of Article 13 of the Convention as the applicants had no effective domestic remedy whereby they might enforce their right to a “hearing within a reasonable time”, as guaranteed by Article 6, paragraph 1, of the Convention;

Recalling that the obligation of every state, under Article 46, paragraph 1, of the Convention, to abide by the judgments of the Court involves an obligation rapidly to adopt the individual measures necessary to erase the consequences of the violations, as well as to adopt general measures preventing new violations of the Convention similar to those found, including provision of effective domestic remedies against possible violations;

Stressing the importance of rapid adoption of such measures in the cases at issue as they reveal structural problems giving rise to a large number of new, similar violations of the Convention;

Recalling that excessive delays in the administration of justice constitute a serious danger for the respect of the rule of law;

Recalling furthermore the Committee of Ministers ' Recommendation to member states Rec(2004)6 regarding the need to improve the efficiency of domestic remedies;

Measures to accelerate proceedings before administrative courts

Having noted the individual measures taken by the authorities to provide the applicants redress for the violations found ( restitutio in integrum ), having invited them in particular to accelerate, as far as possible, the proceedings which were still pending after the findings of violations by the Court;

Welcoming the subsequent termination of proceedings before the Council of State in the cases of Kabetsis, Kaskaniotis, Makedonopoulos, Moïsidis and Tsantiris, which were pending at the time of the Court ' s judgments;

Recalling the constitutional, legislative and other reforms adopted so far by the authorities in order to remedy the problems related to the excessive length of proceedings in administrative courts (see Final Resolution ResDH(2005)65 concerning cases of excessive length of proceedings before administrative courts ( P afitis and other cases);

Noting with concern, however, that the European Court continues to find violations of Article 6, paragraph 1, due to excessively lengthy proceedings before Greek administrative courts, in particular before the Council of State;

Considering therefore that further general measures are required to comply with the Court ' s judgments;

Noting with interest the new draft law which has been prepared and is entitled “improvement and acceleration of administrative court proceedings”, currently pending before P arliament, which in particular imposes limitations on the possibilities for parties to request and obtain adjournments of hearings, provides the possibility of services to be effected on behalf of an individual party by court clerks ' offices and provides strict deadlines within which administrative court judges should deliver their judgments after the hearings;

Measures to set up an effective domestic remedy

Noting with concern that the problem of lack of effective remedy, highlighted for the first time in the Konti ‑ Arvaniti case mentioned above in 2003, still remains unresolved;

Welcoming the work accomplished by the Greek authorities leading to the preparation of a draft law entitled “Compensation of litigants due to excessively lengthy judicial proceedings”, which provides for a domestic remedy in the form of compensation in cases of excessive length of proceedings, at any stage whatsoever, before administrative, civil or criminal courts;

Stressing however that the creation of the new domestic remedy will not obviate the obligation to pursue with diligence the adoption of general measures required to remedy the underlying systemic problem of excessive length of proceedings in Greece, notably of the proceedings before the administrative courts and the Council of State,

URGES the Greek authorities, in view of the gravity of the systemic problem at the basis of the violations:

- to accelerate the adoption of the new draft legislation aimed at the acceleration of proceedings before all administrative courts and to envisage additional measures such as further increase of the posts of judges and of administrative staff in these courts and further improvement of their infrastructure;

- to make all possible efforts to accelerate the adoption of the new draft legislation providing for a remedy and to ensure that this is implemented in accordance with the requirements of the Convention and the case-law of the Court;

DECIDES to resume consideration of these cases, at the latest, at its 1013th meeting (3 ‑ 5 December 2007) (DH).

* * *

Appendix to Interim Resolution CM /ResDH(2007)74

- 85 cases of excessively length of proceedings concerning civil rights and obligations before administrative courts (and the lack of an effective remedy)

70626/01 Manios, judgment of 11/03/2004, final on 11/06/2004

19841/02 Agathos and 49 others, judgment of 23/09/04, final on 02/02/05

43848/02 Aggelopoulos, judgment of 09/06/2005, final on 09/09/2005

37429/02 Anagnostopoulos, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

10803/04 Andoniadis, judgment of 06/07/2006, final on 06/10/2006

33523/02 Andreadaki and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

21824/02 Andrianesis and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 06/07/2005

34206/02 Apostolaki, judgment of 17/03/2005, final on 17/06/2005

34339/02 Athanasiadis and others, judgment of 28/04/2005, final on 30/11/2005

10691/04 Athanasiou., judgment of 01/06/2006, final on 01/09/2006

38302/02 Charmantas and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

13320/03 Damilakos, judgment of 30/03/06, final on 30/06/06

13332/03 Ekdoseis N. P apanikolaou A.e., judgment of 04/05/2006, final on 04/08/2006

18830/03 Fraggalexi, judgment of 09/06/2005, final on 09/09/2005

36251/03 Galatalis, judgment of 13/07/2006, final on 13/10/2006

5077/03 Gavalas, judgment of 04/08/2005, final on 04/11/2005

25324/03 Georgopoulos and others, judgment of 08/12/05, final on 08/03/06

15689/03 Giakoumeli and others, judgment of 08/12/05, final on 08/03/06

70314/01 Gialamas, judgment of 21/10/04, final on 21/01/05

72285/01 Giamas and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

33339/02 Gika and 9 others, judgment of 17/03/2005, final on 17/06/2005

394/03 Gika and five others, judgment of 30/06/2005, final on 30/09/2005

14173/03 Gili and others, judgment of 08/12/05, final on 08/03/06

72983/01 Goutsia and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

72030/01 Hadjidjanis, judgment of 28/04/05, final on 28/07/05

5072/03 Ioannidis, judgment of 04/08/2005, final on 04/11/2005

5973/03 Kabetsis, judgment of 21/04/2005, final on 21/07/2005

67591/01 Kalkanis, judgment of 08/07/2004, final on 08/10/2004

33173/02 Kalliri-Giannikopoulou and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

38688/02 Kallitsis No. 2, judgment of 17/02/2005, final on 06/07/2005

21276/03 Karagiannis Charalambos, judgment of 09/06/2005, final on 09/09/2005

27806/02 Karagiannis Stamatios, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

6706/02 Karellis, judgment of 02/12/2004, final on 02/03/2005

37420/02 Karobeïs, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

21279/03 Kaskaniotis and others, judgment of 09/06/2005, final on 09/09/2005

32279/02 Katsaros Charalambos, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

5957/03 Kollias, judgment of 21/04/2005, final on 21/07/2005

10304/03 Kollokas, judgment of 30/03/06, final on 30/06/06

31259/04 Kortessi, judgment of 13/07/2006, final on 11/12/2006

33819/02 Kosti-Spanopoulou, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

33191/02 Kotsanas, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

5967/03 Koufogiannis, judgment of 21/04/2005, final on 21/07/2005

72289/01 Kouremenos and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

34362/02 Koutroubas and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

73669/01 Kozyris and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

72211/01 Lagouvardou- P apatheodorou and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

65430/01 Lalousi-Kotsovos, judgment of 19/05/2004, final on 19/08/2004

31282/04 Lazaridi, judgment of 13/07/2006, final on 11/12/2006

19731/02 Loumidis, judgment of 04/08/2005, final on 04/11/2005

16106/03 Makedonopoulos, judgment of 19/05/2005, final on 19/08/2005

43841/02 Makris, judgment of 07/04/2005, final on 07/07/2005

25536/04 Mantzila, judgment of 04/05/2006, final on 04/08/2006

34358/02 Mikros, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

16109/03 Moïsidis, judgment of 19/05/2005, final on 19/08/2005

22029/03 Nafpliotis, judgment of 02/06/2005, final on 02/09/2005

6711/02 Nastos, judgment of 15/07/2004, final on 10/11/2004

31273/04 Nikas and Nika, judgment of 13/07/2006, final on 11/12/2006

21978/03 Nikolopoulos, judgment of 02/06/2005, final on 02/09/2005

32168/03 Nikopoulou, judgment of 29/09/2005, final on 29/12/2005

42589/02 Oikonomidis, judgment of 17/02/2005, final on 17/05/2005

8694/02 P alaska, judgment of 19/05/2004, final on 10/11//2004

33808/02 P apamichaïl and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

18602/03 P atelaki-Skamagga and others, judgment of 30/06/2005, final on 30/09/2005

18582/03 P atsouraki and others, judgment of 30/06/2005, final on 30/09/2005

5038/03 P lastarias, judgment of 21/04/2005, final on 21/07/2005

33518/02 Refene-Michalopoulou and others, judgment of 17/03/2005, final on 17/06/2005

14165/03 Renieri and others, judgment of 08/12/05, final on 08/03/06

64756/01 Sadik Amet and others, judgment of 03/02/2005, final on 03/05/2005

37428/02 Selianitis, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

5081/03 Spyropoulos, judgment of 04/08/2005, final on 04/11/2005

14127/03 Stamos, judgment of 19/05/2005, final on 19/08/2005

34366/02 Stathoudaki and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

42108/02 Tavlikou-Vosynioti, judgment of 09/06/2005, final on 09/09/2005

16696/02 Theodoropoulos and others, judgment of 15/07/2004, final on 15/10/2004

9673/03 Tsamou, judgment of 21/04/2005, final on 21/07/2005

42320/02 Tsantiris, judgment of 01/12/05, final on 01/03/06

5085/03 Tsaras, judgment of 04/08/2005, final on 04/11/2005

13464/04 Tsiotras, judgment of 01/06/2006, final on 01/09/2006

17965/03 Tzaggaraki and others, judgment of 26/01/2006, final on 26/04/2006

72270/01 Vasilaki and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

19431/02 Vayopoulou, judgment of 15/07/2004, final on 15/10/2004

72267/01 Veli-Makri and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

65501/01 Vergos, judgment of 24/06/2004, final on 24/09/2004

27802/02 Vlasopoulos and others, judgment of 10/02/2005, final on 10/05/2005

5076/03 Vozinos, judgment of 04/08/2005, final on 04/11/2005

- 5 cases of excessively length of proceedings before civil courts and the lack of an effective remedy

53401/99 Konti-Arvaniti, judgment of 10/04/03, final on 10/07/03

77198/01 Athanasiou, judgment of 29/09/05, final on 29/12/05

20898/03 Chatzibyrros and others, judgment of 06/04/06, final on 06/07/06

11720/03 Inexco, judgment of 27/04/06, final on 27/07/06

3257/03 Sflomos, judgment of 21/04/05, final on 21/07/05