Communicated on 30 March 2017

FOURTH SECTION

Application no. 878/13 A.V . against Slovenia lodged on 18 December 2012

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The applicant, Mr A. V., is a Slovenian national. He and M. have three children, who are triplets , born on the same day in 1996.

M. and the applicant separated on an unspecified date and M. has had sole custody of their three children since then. It would appear that for some time after the separation , contact between the applicant and his children was good but it then started to deteriorate. In 2009 a welfare c entre filed a request with a domestic court asking the latter to order that visits be organised within the framework of family therapy or, if that was not possible, to suspend contact between the applicant and the children. The applicant opposed the request of the welfare centre, arguing that the latter had aligned itself with M. and had neglected the obligations imposed on it by the court to monitor the contact and to assist the applicant and his children in improving their relationship. In 2011 the court issued a decision discontinuing contact between the applicant and his children. It rejected the remainder of the welfare centre ’ s request, namely obligatory participation in family therapy and the applicant ’ s request for an interim measure ordering family therapy. The applicant lodged an appeal and a constitutional complaint but to no avail.

In the meantime the Inspectorate for Social Matters at the Ministry for Work, Family and Social Affairs issued an audit report which found a number of flaws in the welfare centre ’ s handling of the applicant ’ s case.

The applicant complains that his right to a fair trial under Article 6 of the Convention and respect for his family life under Article 8 of the Convention have been violated on account of the court ’ s decision discontinuing contact between him and his three children and its refusal to order family therapy, and the alleged inadequate work of the welfare c entre .