Information Note on the Court’s case-law 21

August 2000

C.P. v. France - 36009/97

Judgment 1.8.2000 [Section III]

Article 6

Criminal proceedings

Article 6-1

Reasonable time

Length of criminal proceedings: no violation

Facts : The case concerned the length of criminal proceedings against the applicants in connection with a large-scale fraud involving a number of companies.

Law : Article 6 § 1 – The proceedings ha d lasted more than seven years and ten months in all. The case had been very complex since it concerned a large-scale fraud involving a number of companies and consisting in complex transactions calculated to evade the vigilance of the investigating author ities. The investigating judge had had to untangle a network of interlinked companies and identify the exact nature of the institutional, administrative and financial relations between them. Although the applicants had exercised numerous remedies, particul arly during the judicial investigation, having made a large number of applications to the investigating judge, they had not contributed unduly to the overall length of the proceedings. Regard being had to the complexity of the case and the energetic prosec ution of the investigation by the investigating judge, the time taken for the judicial investigation stage (more than two years and eight months) could not be considered unreasonable. Although a long time had been taken by the public prosecutor to draft an application for an extension of the investigation stage (one and a half years), this had not had any specific impact on the overall length of the proceedings. Lastly, the length of the judicial proceedings after the investigation stage (more than three ye ars and six months) could not be considered excessive in view of the fact that three different courts had had to hear the case.

Conclusion : no violation (unanimously).

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

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