Resolution CM/ResDH(2022)252

Execution of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights

Six cases against Norway

(Adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 22 September 2022 at the 1443 rd meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies)

Application No.

Case

Judgment of

Final on

39710/15

PEDERSEN AND OTHERS

10/03/2020

07/09/2020

64639/16

M.L.

22/12/2020

22/03/2021

57678/18

K.E. AND A.K.

01/07/2021

01/07/2021

49452/18

R.O.

01/07/2021

01/07/2021

39717/19

E.H.

25/11/2021

25/11/2021

15379/16

ABDI IBRAHIM

10/12/2021

Grand Chamber

The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 46, paragraph 2, of the Convention for the Protection 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 “the Convention” and “the Court”),

Having regard to the final judgments transmitted by the Court to the Committee in these cases and to the violations established of the biological parents’ right to family life due to shortcomings in the balancing exercise of competing interests and the decision-making processes by the Norwegian child welfare authorities and courts concerning adoption of their children or overly restrictive contact rights with their children after they had been taken into foster care;

Recalling the respondent State’s obligation, under Article 46, paragraph 1, of the Convention, to abide by all final judgments in cases to which it has been a party and that this obligation entails, over and above the payment of any sums awarded by the Court, the adoption by the authorities of the respondent State, where required:

- of individual measures to put an end to violations established and erase their consequences so as to achieve as far as possible restitutio in integrum ; and

- of general measures preventing similar violations;

Having invited the government of the respondent State to inform the Committee of the measures taken to comply with the above-mentioned obligation;

Having examined the action plan provided by the government indicating the individual measures adopted in order to give effect to the judgments including the information provided regarding the payment of the just satisfaction awarded by the Court (see documents DH-DD(2022)659 , DH-DD(2022)659-add , DH-DD(2022)810 ; see also the summary of the measures taken set out in H/EXEC(2022)15 );

Considering that the question of individual measures was therefore resolved;

- in the cases of Pedersen and Others and E.H. , given the applicants’ failure to lodge reopening requests before the domestic courts of the impugned adoption decisions within the statutory deadline;

- in the cases of Abdi Ibrahim and M.L. , given that the applicants’ requests for reopening of the adoption decisions were carefully considered and rejected by the domestic courts in duly substantiated decisions with reference to the Convention, the best interests of the children and the Convention rights of all parties involved;

- in the case of K.E. and A.K. where the level of contact between the child and the applicants has, at their request, been increased by the County Social Welfare Board, in a decision which has not been appealed by the applicants; and

- in the case of R.O. where the child was initially returned to the applicant in 2020 following the lifting of the care order, but subsequently voluntarily returned to public care on the initiative of the applicant;

Recalling that the question of general measures required in response to the shortcomings found by the Court in the present judgments continues to be examined within the framework of the Strand Lobben and Others group of cases and that the closure of these cases therefore in no way prejudges the Committee’s evaluation of the general measures required;

DECLARES that it has exercised its functions under Article 46, paragraph 2, of the Convention in these cases and

DECIDES to close the examination of these cases.