4.  The applicant was born in 1950 and lives in Budapest. 5.  In the context of complications suffered from plastic surgery, on 13 February 1992 the applicant brought an action in compensation against a hospital. 6.  After having held several hearings and obtained the opinion of an expert, on 11 October 1994 the Pest Central District Court gave an interim judgment, accepting the applicant’s entitlement to compensation. On appeal, on 7 November 1995 the Budapest Regional Court upheld this decision. 7.  Subsequently the proceedings continued before the District Court. In January 1996 the applicant extended her claims. After having held several hearings and obtained an expert opinion, on 27 January 2000 the District Court partly found for the applicant. On 24 January 2001 the Regional Court amended this decision. 8.  On 25 June 2003 the Supreme Court quashed these decisions and remitted the case to the first-instance court. 9.  After several hearings in the resumed first-instance proceedings, on 31 October 2006 the District Court ordered the respondent to pay the applicant 1.9 million Hungarian forints (HUF) in compensation plus accrued interest, together with a monthly allowance in arrears and pro futuro. 10.  On 19 February 2008 the Regional Court upheld this judgment. 11.  On 6 May 2008 the first-instance judgment was rectified.


5.  The applicant was born in 1951 and lives in Barnaul. 6.  On 12 October and 15 December 1999 and on 4 February 2000 the applicant was charged with unlawful business activities, tax evasion and fraud, respectively. Three criminal cases against the applicant were initiated. 7.  On 4 February 2000 the applicant was remanded in custody. 8.  On 9 August 2000 the three criminal cases against the applicant were joined. 9.  From 10 December 1999 to 15 March 2001 the prosecutor's office of the Tsentralnyy District of Barnaul extended the preliminary investigation seven times in view of the complexity of the case. 10.  On 29 June 2001 the bill of indictment against the applicant was issued. 11.  On 17 September 2001 the case was transmitted to the Tsentralniy District Court of Barnaul. 12.  On 6 March 2003 the Tsentralniy District Court of Barnaul convicted the applicant as charged and sentenced him to four years' imprisonment. 13.  On 15 May 2003 the Altayskiy Regional Court commuted the term of imprisonment to three years and ten months and upheld the remainder of the judgment. 14.  The applicant was released on 23 May 2003. 15.  Following his arrest on 4 February 2000 the applicant was detained in a temporary detention centre in Barnaul (Изолятор временного содержания г. Барнаула). Thereafter, the applicant was transferred to the pre-trial detention centre no. IZ-17/1.
In the course of the preliminary investigation the applicant was returned to the temporary detention centre several times in order to participate in investigative measures. The applicant submitted, and the Government did not dispute, that he had spent seventy-nine days in total in the temporary detention centre. The parties did not specify the dates when the transfers to the temporary detention centre had taken place. 16.  It is clear that from 4 to 20 February 2000 the applicant was held in the temporary detention centre in a cell measuring 20 sq. m. The applicant submitted that he shared the cell with thirty inmates, that there had been no beds in the cell and that the inmates had to sleep on the floor. 17.  According to the Government, the exact number of detainees per cell could not be established because the registers had since been destroyed. The Government also submitted that the applicant's cell had been equipped with beds. 18.  From 21 February 2000 to 23 May 2003 the applicant was held in the pre-trial detention centre no. IZ-17/1 in Barnaul. 19.  The parties submitted the following information concerning the cells where the applicant had been held.
(a)  Measurements of the cells and number of inmates per cell
(i)  Cell no.  208 20.  Relying on a certificate issued on 18 November 2005 by the pre-trial detention centre governor, the Government submitted that the applicant had been held in cell no. 208 from 21 February 2000 to 17 March 2000 and from 23 March 2000 to 15 June 2000. The cell measured 24.5 sq. m; was equipped with six beds and accommodated up to seven inmates. According to the certificate, at that time the pre-trial detention centre, which is designed to accommodate 1,135 persons, housed 2,600 to 2,790 inmates. 21.  The applicant submitted that the cell measured 12 sq. m and had been severely overcrowded.
(ii)  Cell no. 205 22.  The Government submitted that from 15 June 2000 to 25 July 2000 the applicant had been held in cell no. 205. The cell measured 32.1 sq. m; it was equipped with eight beds and accommodated up to nine inmates. According to the same certificate, at the material time the detention centre housed 2,600 to 2,750 inmates. 23.  The applicant submitted that the cell measured 16 sq. m and had been severely overcrowded.
(iii)  Cell no. 221 24.  The Government submitted that from 25 July 2000 to 25 March 2001 the applicant had been held in cell no. 221. The cell measured 24.1 sq. m; it was equipped with six beds and accommodated up to six inmates. According to the same certificate, at the material time the detention centre housed 1,900 to 2,320 inmates. 25.  The applicant submitted that the cell measured 11 sq. m and had been overcrowded.
(iv)  Cell no. 194 26.  The Government submitted that from 25 March 2001 to 11 April 2001 the applicant had been held in cell no. 194. The cell measured 24.1 sq. m; it was equipped with six beds and accommodated up to six inmates. According to the same certificate, at the material time the detention centre housed 1,900 to 1,980 inmates. 27.  The applicant submitted that the cell measured 10 sq. m and had been overcrowded.
 (v)  Cell no. 192 28.  The Government submitted that from 11 April 2001 to 14 March 2003 the applicant had been held in cell no. 192. The cell measured 24.8 sq. m; it was equipped with six beds and accommodated up to six inmates. According to the same certificate, at the material time the detention centre housed 1,470 to 1,980 inmates. 29.  The applicant disagreed with the Government, claiming that during the two years of his stay in cell no. 192 it had accommodated up to twelve inmates. As a result, inmates had to take turns to sleep or slept on the concrete floor. He submitted written statements by four of his former cellmates, according to which cell no. 192 measured 11 sq. m and had been severely overcrowded.
(vi)  Cell no. 128 30.  The Government submitted that from 14 April 2003 to 20 May 2003 the applicant had been held in cell no. 128. The cell measured 120.2 sq. m; it was equipped with thirty beds and accommodated up to twenty-seven inmates. According to the same certificate, at the material time the detention centre housed 1,400 to 1,470 inmates. 31.  The applicant submitted that the cell measured 100 sq. m. He did not comment on the number of inmates in the cell.
(b)  Sanitary conditions in the cells and the freedom of movement enjoyed by the applicant 32.  Relying on the certificate issued on 18 November 2005 by the detention centre governor, the Government submitted that the conditions in all of the cells had been satisfactory. In particular, the cells had been equipped with a lavatory pan separated from the living area and the cell windows had not been covered with metal shutters. The certificate did not describe the state of the cells during the period of the applicant's detention from 21 February 2000 to 23 May 2003. 33.  The Government submitted that the applicant had been allowed one-hour daily walks in the courtyard. 34.  The applicant submitted that a lavatory pan had not been separated from the living area and offered no privacy; it had been located within 0.5 or 1 metre from the dining table. The cell windows were covered with metal shutters and let no air through. There was no ventilation in the cells. 35.  The applicant pointed out that the sanitary conditions in cell no. 128 had been satisfactory.
(c)  The applicant's placement in solitary confinement cell no. 3 36.  From 17 to 23 March 2000 the applicant was held in solitary cell no. 3 on suspicion of having the HIV virus. The applicant submitted that the cell had been a punishment cell, located in the basement with no access to daylight or fresh air. He also submitted that he had not been given food for the first three days of his stay in that cell because he had not been provided with any cutlery or tableware by the detention centre administration. According to the certificate of 18 November 2005 issued by the detention centre governor and submitted by the Government, cell no. 3 was a solitary confinement cell rather than a punishment cell. The Government also submitted documents showing that the cell had a window and that the applicant had been provided in good time with cutlery, tableware and other necessary items.
(d)  Medical assistance provided to the applicant 37.  The applicant submitted that during the period of his detention his spine had hurt but he had been refused medical assistance. The Government provided the Court with the applicant's medical file, according to which the applicant had received treatment for spinal osteochondrosis at the detention centre's medical unit. 38.  The applicant was transported from the pre-trial detention centre to the courthouse on 145 occasions, the last time on 15 May 2003. He offered the following description of the days of transport. 39.  On the days of the hearings he had been woken up at 5 a.m. At about 6 a.m. he had been taken from his cell to the so-called “assembly” cell, together with other detainees who had a hearing on that day. 40.  The applicant had not normally arrived back at the prison until 7.30 p.m. and had been held in the “assembly” cell until 10 or 11 p.m. During the day he had received no food or outdoor exercise and had often missed the weekly shower. 41.  The Government submitted that on the days of transport the applicant had been woken at 6 a.m. and taken to the court in the prison van. He would normally come back to the prison no later than 8 p.m. According to the certificate of 18 November 2005 issued by the detention centre governor, on the days of transport the applicant had been fed in the morning and had been given a packed meal in accordance with the order of the Ministry of Justice of 4 February 2004. 42.  The applicant pointed out that the detention centre administration had started to give packed meals to detainees after 4 February 2004 when the respective order was adopted by the Ministry of Justice, whereas he had been released on 23 May 2003.


4.  The first applicant is the editorial board of Pravoye Delo, a newspaper officially registered in Odessa in May 2000. The second applicant is the editor-in-chief of Pravoye Delo. He lives in Odessa. 5.  At the material time Pravoye Delo was a local newspaper published three times a week with a circulation of 3,000 copies. It published reports and material on political and social matters in Ukraine and, in particular, the Odessa Region. Due to lack of funds, the newspaper often reprinted articles and other material obtained from various public sources, including the Internet. 6.  On 19 September 2003 Pravoye Delo published an anonymous letter, allegedly written by an employee of the Security Service of Ukraine, which the second applicant’s colleague, Ms I., had downloaded from a news website. The letter contained allegations that senior officials of the Odessa Regional Department of the Security Service had been engaging in unlawful and corrupt activities, and in particular that they had connections with members of organised criminal groups. One of the paragraphs of the letter read as follows:
“... The Deputy Head of [the Odessa Regional Department of the Security Service] [I. T.], a close friend and assistant of the Head of the Department P., established ‘business’ contacts with [the organised criminal group] of [A. A.] ... A member of [the organised criminal group] G. T., an agent of [A. A.], who is in charge of the main areas of activities of the gang [is] a coordinator and sponsor of murders, [he] meets with [I. T.] and resolves financial issues for the top officials of the Department of [the Security Service] in the Odessa Region ...” 7.  The letter was followed by these comments, prepared by Ms I. on behalf of the editorial board:
“When publishing this letter without the knowledge and consent of the editor-in‑chief, I understand that I may not only face trouble ... but I may also create problems for the newspaper. Because, if this letter is [misinformation], then [the media], in which it appears may be endangered. On the other hand, if this letter is genuine, then its author faces a higher risk. Besides, given that this anonimka [anonymous letter] has already been published on the Odessa website Vlasti.net (to which we refer, in accordance with their requirement), we have the blessing of God [to publish it]. We are proceeding on the understanding that, in accordance with the Act on Democratic Civil Control over the Military Organisation and Law-Enforcement Organs of the State, we are carrying out civil control and, under section 29 of the Act, we would like to receive open information concerning the facts described in this letter from the relevant authorities. Moreover, [it is to be noted] that the Department [of the Security Service] in the Odessa Region did not react to an analogous publication in the Top Secret [newspaper] ... I remind [you] that the [Pravoye Delo] newspaper ... is wide open for letters in reply and comments from all interested agencies.” 8.  In October 2003 G. T., who lived in Odessa at the time and was the President of the Ukraine National Thai Boxing Federation, brought defamation proceedings in the Prymorskiy District Court of Odessa against the applicants. G. T. alleged that the information in the 19 September 2003 issue of Pravoye Delo concerned him, and that it was untrue and had damaged his dignity and reputation. He asked the court to order the applicants to publish a retraction and an apology and to pay him compensation for non-pecuniary damage in the amount of 200,000 Ukrainian hryvnias (UAH)[1]. 9.  The applicants first argued before the court that they were not responsible for the accuracy of the information contained in the material that they had published, as they had reproduced material published elsewhere without making any modifications. The publication contained a reference to the source of the material and was followed by comments explaining the editors’ position regarding the material and inviting comments from the persons and bodies concerned. The applicants also submitted that if the court were to award G. T. the amount of compensation he had claimed, the newspaper would become insolvent and would have to close. 10.  Subsequently, at a hearing on 24 April 2004, the second applicant stated that the article was not about the claimant and that its wording did not necessarily establish that it was a particular “G. T.” who was being referred to. 11.  On 7 May 2004 the court ruled against the applicants. It found that the information at issue did concern the claimant, who was a public figure involved in public activities in the Odessa Region and had represented Ukraine at sports events abroad in his capacity as President of the Ukraine National Thai Boxing Federation. In that context, the court noted that this had not been contested by the applicants in their initial submissions and that the publication was about the activities of the Security Service in the Odessa Region. The court further held that the content was defamatory and that the applicants had failed to prove that it was true. It found no grounds on which to exempt the applicants from civil liability under section 42 of the Press Act, as the Internet site to which they had referred was not printed media registered pursuant to section 32 of the Press Act. 12.  The court ordered the first applicant to publish a retraction of the following content of the publication:
“... A member of [the organised criminal group], G. T., an agent of [A. A.], who is in charge of the main areas of activities of the gang [is] a coordinator and sponsor of murders, [he] meets with [I. T.] and resolves financial issues for the top officials of the Department [of the Security Service] in the Odessa Region ...” 13.  The court further ordered the second applicant to publish an official apology in the newspaper. 14.  In determining the amount of compensation to be paid to the claimant, the court considered the submissions of the latter and the information concerning the financial situation of the newspaper. It noted that its gross annual income was about UAH 22,000[2] and found it reasonable to order the applicants jointly to pay G. T. UAH 15,000[3] for non‑pecuniary damage. The applicants were also ordered to pay to the State Budget UAH 750[4] in court fees. 15.  The applicants appealed. They maintained the submissions they had made before the first-instance court and also contended that the editorial board had not been registered as a legal entity pursuant to the relevant regulations on registration of the media and that the second applicant had not been appointed as editor-in-chief in accordance with the law. Thus, in their view, they could not take part in the proceedings. 16.  The applicants further argued that invoking their civil liability was contrary to section 41 of the Press Act and section 17 of the Act on State Support of Mass Media and Social Protection of Journalists, stating that they had not intended to defame G. T. and that, by publishing the material, they had wished to promote public discussion of the issues raised in that material which were of significant public interest. According to them, it was their duty to disseminate the material and the public had a right to receive it. 17.  The second applicant also submitted that he had not authorised the publication of the material at issue and that the legislation did not provide for an obligation to apologise as a sanction for defamation. 18.  On 14 September 2004 and 24 February 2005, respectively, the Odessa Regional Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court rejected the applicants’ appeals and upheld the judgment of the first-instance court. 19.  On 3 July 2006 the applicants and G. T. concluded a friendly-settlement agreement, pursuant to which the latter waived any claim in respect of the amount of compensation awarded in the judgment of 7 May 2004. The applicants, for their part, undertook to cover all the costs and expenses relating to the court proceedings and to publish in Pravoye Delo promotional and informational materials at G. T.’s request, the volume of which was limited to the amount of compensation under the judgment. 20.  In 2008 the applicants discontinued publishing Pravoye Delo.


5.  The applicant was born in 1933. He was detained in Aachen Prison until his release on 1 March 2008. 6.  The applicant has been convicted twenty-two times since 1949, initially notably for smuggling and thefts. Since 1955 he has spent most of his life in prison. 7.  On 23 April 1968 the Cologne Regional Court convicted the applicant on two charges of joint aggravated (armed) robbery of a bank, sentenced him to twelve years’ imprisonment and ordered his preventive detention. 8.  On 20 January 1970 the Cologne Regional Court convicted the applicant of aggravated robbery-style theft committed against a money courier. Taking into account the term of imprisonment from the judgment of 23 April 1968, it imposed on the applicant a cumulative sentence of thirteen years’ imprisonment, but quashed the order for preventive detention. The remainder of his prison sentence was suspended on 31 March 1977 and the applicant was released and placed on probation; this suspension was subsequently revoked. 9.  On 7 December 1978 the Cologne Regional Court convicted the applicant, in particular, of two counts of joint aggravated (armed) robbery, of aiding and abetting another joint aggravated robbery, of three counts of aggravated theft and one count of attempted aggravated theft. It sentenced him to thirteen years’ imprisonment and ordered his preventive detention under Article 66 § 1 of the Criminal Code (see paragraphs 45-46 below). 10.  The Cologne Regional Court found that the applicant, who had been released from prison on 31 March 1977 and had a job, had committed the said offences between June 1977 and his arrest in November 1977. Together with two accomplices, he had robbed a money courier and a bank, armed. He had further stolen or attempted to steal together with others several cars which had later been used when committing the two robberies and another bank robbery in which the applicant had not otherwise participated. 11.  Having consulted an expert, the Cologne Regional Court found that since his youth the applicant had been strongly inclined to commit offences and to make his living thereby, even though he could have worked. Serving long sentences had not prevented him from reoffending and from committing more and more serious offences at ever shorter intervals. Since there were no indications that the applicant would not reoffend, he was dangerous to the public. 12.  On 11 April 1980 the Federal Court of Justice dismissed the applicant’s appeal on points of law against the judgment of 7 December 1978, which thereby became final. 13.  On 29 April 1983 the Bonn Regional Court reopened the proceedings in respect of one of the applicant’s accomplices, W., who had also been convicted of bank robbery on 7 December 1978, and acquitted him. The third accomplice to the robbery, Schw., had confessed that he had wrongfully incriminated both W. and the applicant in this offence. The applicant’s request for reopening of the proceedings against him was subsequently dismissed. 14.  On 2 February 1993 the Bonn Regional Court suspended the order remanding the applicant in preventive detention from 26 April 1993 (when the applicant would have served his full prison sentence), granted probation and ordered the applicant to be placed under supervision of conduct (Führungsaufsicht) for four years. 15.  The applicant served the sentence imposed by the judgment of 7 December 1978 in full, as well as the remainder of the sentence imposed by the judgment of 20 January 1970, until 26 April 1993. 16.  On 20 May 1996 the Koblenz Regional Court convicted the applicant of aggravated (armed) robbery committed with others, sentenced him to ten years’ imprisonment and ordered his preventive detention. It found that the applicant, armed with a machine gun, had robbed a bank together with an accomplice in June 1995; he had been in custody since then. 17.  On 13 November 1996 the Federal Court of Justice quashed the judgment of 20 May 1996 so far as the applicant’s sentence and his preventive detention were concerned and remitted the case to the Regional Court. 18.  On 18 June 1997 the Koblenz Regional Court again sentenced the applicant to ten years’ imprisonment. It considered the conditions for his preventive detention under Article 66 of the Criminal Code to have been met. However, for reasons of proportionality, the court did not order the applicant’s preventive detention, which would then have been of indefinite duration. It argued that from 8 June 2005 onwards, the applicant would be placed in preventive detention on the basis of the judgment of 7 December 1978, as the provisional suspension of his preventive detention on 2 February 1993 was likely to be revoked, and that he would be of advanced age afterwards. 19.  On 6 July 1998 the Bonn Regional Court, acting as the court dealing with the execution of sentences, revoked the suspension of the applicant’s provisional preventive detention granted on 2 February 1993 pursuant to Article 67g § 1 no. 1 of the Criminal Code (see paragraph 51 below) in view of his renewed conviction for aggravated robbery committed in June 1995. 20.  On 1 September 1998 the Cologne Court of Appeal, disagreeing with the General Public Prosecutor’s view, dismissed the applicant’s appeal against the decision of 6 July 1998. The applicant’s objection was of no avail. 21.  On 25 February 1999 the Federal Constitutional Court declined to consider the applicant’s constitutional complaint (no. 2 BvR 1712/98) against the decision of the Cologne Court of Appeal dated 1 September 1998. It found that the applicant had failed sufficiently to substantiate his complaint, which was therefore inadmissible. It observed, however, that the provisions of the Criminal Code did not permit the revocation of the suspension of the applicant’s provisional preventive detention after the expiry of the four-year period of supervision of his conduct. It was firstly up to the courts dealing with matters relating to the execution of sentences to examine whether the revocation decision could be amended at the applicant’s request or of the court’s own motion. 22.  On 13 April 1999 the Cologne Court of Appeal dismissed the applicant’s request, supported by the Public Prosecutor General, for the decisions of the Bonn Regional Court dated 6 July 1998 and of the Cologne Court of Appeal dated 1 September 1998 to be set aside. It found that under Article 68c § 3, second sentence, of the Criminal Code (see paragraph 52 below), the supervision of the applicant’s conduct for four years ordered in 1993 had not ended until now as the applicant had been detained since June 1995 and the time spent in detention did not count towards the period of the supervision of his conduct. Therefore, the provisional suspension of the preventive detention order against him could still be revoked in 1998. 23.  On 13 September 2004 the Aachen Regional Court started the proceedings for examination of the need for the applicant’s preventive detention after the end of his prison term by requesting the Public Prosecutor’s Office to send the case file and by ordering the Aachen Prison authorities to make a statement. 24.  The director of Aachen Prison thereupon sent a statement dated 30 December 2004, which he supplemented at the court’s request on 25 February 2005. Following two reminders from the Regional Court, the Public Prosecutor’s Office submitted the case file to the court in March 2005. 25.  On 30 March 2005 the Regional Court requested a psychiatric expert to give an opinion on whether the applicant was still so dangerous that his preventive detention was necessary. 26.  The applicant served his prison sentence in full, up to 7 June 2005. From 8 June 2005 the applicant was in preventive detention ordered in the judgment dated 7 December 1978. 27.  Following an inquiry of the Regional Court at the applicant’s request, the latter was examined by the psychiatric expert on 3 August 2005. Following two further requests made by the applicant to make progress in the proceedings, a report drafted by two psychiatric experts was submitted to the court on 16 November 2005. 28.  On 30 March 2006 the Aachen Regional Court, having heard the applicant and his counsel on that day and having consulted the director of Aachen Prison and two experts, ordered the execution of the preventive detention order in respect of the applicant made in the Cologne Regional Court judgment of 7 December 1978. 29.  The Regional Court considered in detail the previous convictions of the applicant, aged 72, notably his convictions for aggravated robbery and robbery-style theft by judgments dated 23 April 1968, 20 January 1970, 7 December 1978 and 18 June 1997. 30.  The Regional Court found that the execution of the preventive detention order against the applicant was still necessary in view of its objective (Article 67c § 1 of the Criminal Code, see paragraph 48 below). In the court’s view, the applicant was likely to commit further serious offences similar to those he had previously committed if released (Article 67d § 2 of the Criminal Code, see paragraph 50 below). 31.  In the Regional Court’s view, the applicant had been a persistent offender since his youth, who had reoffended shortly after being released on probation and after serving long prison sentences. He did not have any family ties outside prison and did not have any precise plans as to what he would be doing when released. He was lively for his age. He suffered from orthopaedic health problems, notably injuries to his left knee and his hip, which, as found by the prison doctor, entailed a considerable but not extreme walking disability. His walking ability could have been considerably improved by an artificial hip, but he refused to have the operation while he was in prison. Having consulted the prison doctor, the court took the view that the applicant’s walking disability could not yet be considered so severe as to render him physically unable to commit an offence, notably as his previous offences had not required significant mobility. 32.  The Regional Court, having regard to the report dated 16 November 2005 by the two psychiatric experts who had examined the applicant, took the view that the applicant’s personal and social situation remained similar to that which had existed when he was released from prison in 1993 at the age of 59. He had not changed his attitude towards offences and therefore remained dangerous. 33.  On 26 June 2006 the Cologne Court of Appeal dismissed the applicant’s appeal against the Aachen Regional Court decision of 30 March 2006. It did not share the view expressed by the Federal Constitutional Court in its decision dated 25 February 1999 that the revocation of the suspension of the applicant’s provisional preventive detention had no longer been possible on 6 July 1998 according to the provisions of the Criminal Code. Pursuant to Article 67g § 5 of the Criminal Code (see paragraph 51 below), preventive detention would cease to apply at the end of the offender’s supervision of conduct if the court had not revoked the suspension of his preventive detention before that date. However, the supervision of the applicant’s conduct for four years ordered in 1993 had not ended, as the applicant had been detained since June 1995 and the time spent in detention did not count towards the duration of the supervision of conduct (Article 68c § 3, second sentence, of the Criminal Code). 34.  Moreover, the Court of Appeal found that, contrary to the applicant’s submissions in his appeal, the fact that the Regional Court had failed to reach a decision on the applicant’s preventive detention before the applicant had served his full prison sentence on 7 June 2005 (Article 67c § 2 of the Criminal Code) did not render its decision unlawful. In any event, the mistake had been remedied ex nunc when the decision was taken. 35.  According to the Court of Appeal, the applicant needed to be kept in preventive detention in order to protect the public from particularly dangerous offenders. The applicant did not truly question or regret his offences. As found by two experts in an additional report, the applicant’s statements concerning his offences were very similar to those he had made before his previous release from prison, following which he had reoffended. The applicant’s age and the health problems accompanying it did not, at least at the time, warrant a different conclusion as to the danger he presented to the public. The applicant had also already reached retirement age when he had committed his last offence. As found by the prison doctor on 25 February 2005, his knee and hip were damaged. The court found that these illnesses caused pain, but did not entail a walking disability. 36.  Remanding the applicant in preventive detention was also not disproportionate, as he was likely to commit serious offences if released. However, in view of his present illnesses and the usual diminution of physical fitness with advancing age the applicant’s preventive detention would probably not last until its termination in 2015, but would be suspended on probation. Therefore, the applicant should be prepared for a life outside prison. 37.  On 14 July 2006 the Cologne Court of Appeal dismissed the applicant’s objection against that decision. 38.  On 3 August 2006 the applicant lodged a complaint with the Federal Constitutional Court against the decisions of the Aachen Regional Court dated 30 March 2006 and of the Cologne Court of Appeal dated 26 June 2006. He claimed that his right to liberty had been violated. He argued that, as had been expressly found in the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court dated 25 February 1999, the revocation of the suspension of his provisional preventive detention had no longer been possible on 6 July 1998. Moreover, he had been remanded in preventive detention since 8 June 2005 without a legal basis, in particular because the courts had failed to reach a decision on the necessity of that remand in custody within a reasonable time, as required by Article 67c § 1 of the Criminal Code as interpreted in the well-established case-law of the courts of appeal and of the Federal Constitutional Court itself (see paragraph 49 below). Due to his age, 73, and his walking disability, which had already made him physically unable to reoffend, his preventive detention was also disproportionate. 39.  On 21 September 2006 the Federal Constitutional Court declined to consider the applicant’s constitutional complaint (file no. 2 BvR 1614/06). It found that the complaint had no prospects of success. 40.  The Federal Constitutional Court considered that, even assuming that the decisions on the necessity to remand the applicant in preventive detention should have been based on paragraph 1 of Article 67c of the Criminal Code, they did not violate the Basic Law. Contrary to the applicant’s view, he had not been detained without legal basis in the period between the end of his prison term and the Regional Court’s decision ordering the execution of the preventive detention order against him. Referring to its decision of 9 March 1976 (file no. 2 BvR 618/75, see paragraph 49 below), it found that the execution of a preventive detention order on the basis of a judgment of the sentencing court ordering it under Article 66 of the Criminal Code was permitted if the Regional Court dealing with the execution of sentences had begun with its examination under Article 67c § 1 of the Criminal Code before the person concerned had fully served his prison sentence, even if it had not yet taken its decision. 41.  The Federal Constitutional Court further took the view that the Regional Court, which had started the proceedings concerning suspension of the applicant’s preventive detention some nine months before the end of the applicant’s prison term, had not delayed the proceedings in a manner which would violate his right to liberty. 42.  Furthermore, the decision of the courts dealing with the execution of sentences not to suspend the preventive detention order against the applicant and grant probation did not appear arbitrary in view of the applicant’s repeated serious offences and there was no violation of the courts’ duty to investigate the matter. 43.  On 20 December 2007 the Aachen Regional Court decided to suspend the preventive detention order made against the applicant in the Cologne Regional Court’s judgment of 7 December 1978 and grant probation as of 1 March 2008; it further ordered supervision of the applicant’s conduct. Having regard to all the circumstances of the case before it, including, in particular, the applicant’s walking disability, the court considered, in accordance with the view taken by the medical expert it had consulted and contrary to the view taken by the director of Aachen Prison and the Cologne Public Prosecutor’s Office, that it was to be expected that the applicant would not commit further serious offences similar to those he had previously been convicted of if released (Article 67d § 2 of the Criminal Code).


4.  The applicant was born in 1972 and lives in Olsztyn. 5.  The facts of the case, as submitted by the applicant, may be summarised as follows: 6.  On 30 June 2000 a wanted notice with a detention order was issued in respect of the applicant. 7.  On 28 August 2000 the applicant was arrested on the strength of the above-mentioned order and on 1 September 2000 the decision as to his detention was given by the Olsztyn District Court. He was charged with numerous counts of major financial fraud (several counts of massive-scale bank fraud, deceiving private companies and other financial offences) committed while acting in an organised criminal group. 8.  The applicant's detention was subsequently extended by the following decisions: the Olsztyn District Court decisions of 7 November 2001, 7 February 2002, 21 February and 20 May 2003; and the Olsztyn Regional Court's decision of 9 February 2001. 9.  The courts repeatedly relied on the strong probability that the applicant had committed the offences that he had been charged with and that there was a real risk that he would receive a severe sentence, thereby giving rise to a presumption that he would obstruct the proper conduct of proceedings. They also referred to the risk of absconding, deriving from the fact that the applicant had been sought pursuant to a wanted notice. 10.  The applicant challenged his detention. He lodged appeals against the Olsztyn District Court decisions of 20 May and 24 July 2003, which were dismissed by the Olsztyn Regional Court on 6 June and 8 August 2003 respectively. 11.  He also lodged numerous requests for release from detention, which were dismissed by the Olsztyn District Court decisions of 19 December 2001, 11 January and 13 February 2002, 10 January, 21 February, 27 March and 16 May 2003. 12.  Furthermore, the applicant requested the application of a more lenient preventive measure to replace his detention. That request was refused by the Olsztyn District Court decision of 28 April 2003. 13.  Until March 2002 the trial court effectively held eight hearings. The court conducted extensive evidentiary proceedings; a considerable number of witnesses was heard, evidence was obtained from documents, searches and other sources. 14.  On 5 March 2002 the Olsztyn District Court found the applicant guilty of fraud. It acquitted him of the charge of membership of a criminal organisation, and imposed a sentence of five years' imprisonment. The applicant appealed. Seven hearings were subsequently held by the second-instance court. 15.  On 1 October 2002 the Olsztyn Regional Court quashed the judgment and remitted the case for re-examination. 16.  On 24 July 2003 the Olsztyn District Court again found the applicant guilty of financial fraud and sentenced him to five years' imprisonment. 17.  On 20 July 2004 the Olsztyn Regional Court conditionally released the applicant from serving the remaining part of the sentence, which was due to end on 28 August 2005. 18.  On several occasions between 2003 and 2004 the applicant requested information as to whether a confirmation that the detention order of 30 June 2000 had been served on him was kept in the case file. On 6 June and 10 August 2004 he was informed by the Vice-President of the Regional Court that no such confirmation had been found. 19.  While the applicant was detained, his correspondence was censored on several occasions. 20.  A letter dated 23 November 2001, which was sent to the applicant by his lawyer, bears a “censored” stamp dated 29 November 2001, a handwritten note “on the judge's behalf” and an illegible signature. 21.  Two Olsztyn Tax Office decisions, one dated 30 November 2001, informing the applicant of the institution of tax proceedings against him, and the other dated 3 December 2001, informing the applicant of his right to be heard in the course of the tax proceedings, were also censored. Both decisions bear a “censored” stamp with the date 10 December 2002 and an illegible signature of a judge. They also bear another stamp of the same kind which is almost illegible, bearing the date 11 December 2001 and an illegible signature. 22.  The applicant further submitted an envelope in which the correspondence with the tax office was sent to him. It bears a “censored” stamp with the date 11 December 2001 and an illegible signature of a judge. There are also further notes on it: “it is not subject to censorship” (nie podlega cenzurze) and “I annul subjection to censorship” (uchylam) and “submit to censorship” (poddać cenzurze), followed by an illegible signature. 23.  Finally, the applicant provided two envelopes from letters sent by him to his family and bearing “censored” stamps dated 14 December 2000 and 31 May 2001. 24.  On 16 December 2001, in reply to a complaint by the applicant, the judge admitted that he had stamped the letter of 30 November 2001 sent by the tax office as “censored”, had written a date on it and had signed it. 25.  On 17 March 2003 the applicant lodged a complaint to a higher authority, namely with the Vice-President of the Olsztyn Regional Court, about the censorship of his correspondence by the President of the Criminal Division. 26.  On 17 April 2003 he sent a letter to the Vice-President of the Olsztyn Regional Court requiring just satisfaction for the breach of his right to unrestricted correspondence with his lawyer. 27.  On 7 May 2003 the applicant was informed by the Vice-President of the Olsztyn Regional Court that the letter sent by his lawyer had been censored by mistake and thus the applicant did not have any right to just satisfaction. 28.  On 26 March 2003 he was informed by the Vice-President of the Olsztyn Regional Court that the judge should not have subjected the applicant's correspondence with the tax authorities to censorship, as it was covered by the notion of “official correspondence”, and that he had done so by mistake.


4.  The applicant was born in 1960 and lives in the city of Chernigiv. 5.  On 3 May 1999 the Chernigiv City Prosecutor’ Office (hereinafter the Prosecutor’ Office) instituted criminal proceedings against the applicant for abuse of power and forgery of official documents. The prosecution’s case was that the applicant, while acting in his capacity as a private notary, had fraudulently certified a title and real-estate transactions using invalid registration forms. 6.  On 21 May 1999 the Chernygiv City Prosecutor issued a search warrant in respect of the applicant’s office. The search was carried out the same day. According to the record drawn up on this occasion, the authorities seized at the office notary stamps and documents, a number of accounting records and a metal strong-box.  The latter was opened on 2 July 1999 at the premises of the Prosecutor’s Office. The relevant record stated that there had been found, inter alia, personal items belonging to the applicant. 7.  On 28 July 1999 an investigator from the Prosecutor’s Office closed the applicant’s case given the lack of any corpus delicti. 8.  On 20 September 2000 the acting Chernigiv City Prosecutor overruled the investigator’s decision, as it had been proved that the applicant had committed the imputed offence, but ordered the discontinuation of proceedings due to the insignificance of the offence. The applicant challenged this finding, claiming that he had not committed any offence. On 21 December 2000 the Desniansky District Court of Chernigiv (hereafter “the Desniansky Court”) rejected the applicant’s complaint. 9.  On 26 February 2001 the Presidium of the Chernigiv Regional Court, in the course of supervisory proceedings, quashed the decision of the Desniansky Court and remitted the case. 10.  On 4 April 2001 the Desniansky Court quashed the City Prosecutor’s ruling of 20 September 2000 and ordered a further pre-trial investigation. 11.  On 26 May 2001 an investigator terminated the criminal proceedings on substantially the same grounds as in the September 2000 ruling. On 4 July 2001 the Chernigiv City Prosecutor quashed this decision and ordered further inquiries in the case. 12.  On 4 August 2001 the criminal case was closed due to the insignificance of the offence which had been committed. The applicant’s complaint against this ruling was rejected on 6 November 2001 by the Desniansky Court as being unsubstantiated. In particular, the court indicated that the applicant’s guilt had been proved by the evidence collected in the course of the investigation. 13.  On 24 January 2002 the Chernigiv Regional Court of Appeal (hereafter “the Court of Appeal”) quashed the decision of 6 November 2001 as the local court had failed to specify the evidence in support of its opinion as to the applicant’s guilt. The case was remitted for a fresh consideration. 14.  On 26 June 2002 the Desniansky Court rejected the applicant’s complaint against the ruling of 4 August 2001. The court indicated that the investigation case file contained sufficient evidence to establish that the applicant had forged a certain notary document and wittingly carried out an invalid notarial action. However, having regard to the insignificance of the offence, further criminal prosecution was impractical. As regards the applicant’s submissions concerning the inadmissibility of the evidence obtained by the search of his office, the court found that such complaints could be raised during the trial on the merits and considered itself incompetent to examine them in the course of the proceedings before it.
On 9 September 2002 the Court of Appeal upheld this decision. On 13 December 2002 the Supreme Court rejected the applicant’s request for leave to appeal under the cassation procedure.
b.  Compensation proceedings 15.  In January 2000 the applicant instituted proceedings against the Prosecutor’s Office, seeking monetary compensation for the material and moral damage suffered as a result of the allegedly unlawful search of his office (i.e. loss of or damage to personal items and the seizure of documents essential for his professional activity). 16.  On 28 August 2000 the Novozavodsky District Court of Chernigiv (hereafter “the Novozavodsky Court”) granted this claim. The court declared the search of the applicant’s office “to have been conducted unlawfully” (визнати проведення обшуку незаконним). In particular, it established that in breach of Article 183 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (hereafter “the CCP”) the investigator, being well aware of the applicant’s whereabouts (at that time he was undergoing hospital treatment), had failed to serve the search warrant on him. Moreover, contrary to Article 186 of the CCP, the authorities, instead of collecting the evidence relating to the criminal case, had seized all the official documents and certain personal items in the applicant’s office. This had effectively denied the applicant the possibility of performing his professional duties until 6 August 1999, when the relevant documents and items were returned to him. The court awarded the applicant UAH 14,140[1] in material and UAH 1,000[2] in moral damages. 17.  On 16 January 2001 the Chernygiv Regional Court, on an appeal by the Prosecutor’s Office, quashed the decision of 28 August 2000 and remitted the case for fresh consideration because the legal basis for the decision (namely the termination of the criminal proceedings on “exonerative” grounds) had ceased to exist. 18.  On 26 December 2001 the Novozavodsky Court examined the applicant’s claim and rejected it as being unsubstantiated. The court, referring to the Prosecutor’s Office’s ruling of 4 August 2001, found that the applicant’s case had been closed on non-exonerative grounds, within the meaning of Article 2 of the Law of Ukraine “on the procedure for compensation of damage caused to the citizen by unlawful actions of bodies of inquiry, pre-trial investigation, prosecutors and courts” 1994, and therefore the applicant had no standing to claim compensation for any acts or omissions allegedly committed by the authorities in the course of the investigation. 19.  On 23 May 2002 the Court of Appeal stayed the appeal proceedings until the determination of the applicant’s complaint against the ruling of the Prosecutor’s Office of 4 August 2001 (i.e. the grounds for the termination of his criminal case). On 3 January 2003 the appeal proceedings were renewed and the applicant’s appeal against the judgment of 26 December 2001 was rejected. 20.  In December 2001 the applicant instituted proceedings in the Novozavodsky Court against the Chernigiv Law College and its Principal for defamation. The applicant alleged that, during the Attestation Commission’s hearing on 14 May 2001, the Principal had made three statements about him which were libellous and abusive, including one rudely questioning his mental health. The applicant demanded apologies and compensation for moral damage. 21.  During the trial, one of the applicant’s main arguments was that he had never suffered any mental health problems. He adduced to this effect a certificate supposedly issued by a psychiatric hospital, attesting that the applicant had never been treated there. 22.  The case of the defence was that the Principal had never uttered the obscenities attributed to him by the applicant. However, they challenged the authenticity of the above certificate and asked the court to verify the applicant’s assertions. On 21 March 2002 this application was granted and the Chernigiv Regional Psycho-Neurological Hospital was requested to provide information as to whether the applicant had undergone any psychiatric treatment. On 3 April 2002 the hospital submitted to the court a certificate to the effect that for several years the applicant had been registered as suffering from a certain mental illness and underwent in-patient treatment in different psychiatric establishments. However, several years earlier his psychiatric registration had been cancelled due to long-term remission (a temporary lessening of the severity) of the disease. This information was read out by a judge at one of the subsequent hearings; however, no reference to this evidence was made in the final judgment. 23.  On 3 June 2002 the Novozavodsky Court rejected the applicant’s claim as unsubstantiated. The court found, inter alia, that the applicant had failed to prove that the defendant had made any remarks about his sanity. 24.  The applicant appealed, challenging, inter alia, the lawfulness of the court’s request for information about his mental state. 25.  On 1 October 2002 the Court of Appeal upheld the judgment in substance. On the same day the court issued a separate ruling to the effect that the first instance court’s request for information concerning the applicant’s mental health from the public hospital was contrary to Article 32 of the Constitution, Articles 23 and 31 of the Data Act 1992 and Article 6 of the Psychiatric Medical Assistance Act 2000. In particular, it was indicated that information about a person’s mental health was confidential, and its collection, retention, use and dissemination fell under a special regime. Moreover, the court held that the requested evidence had no relevance to the case.
Summing up the above considerations, the Court of Appeal found that the judges of the lower courts lacked training in the field of confidential data protection and notified the Regional Centre for Judicial Studies about the need to remedy this lacuna in their training programme. 26.  On 24 June 2003 the Supreme Court rejected the applicant’s request for leave to appeal under the cassation procedure.


4.  The applicant was born in 1938 and lives in Orašje, Bosnia and Herzegovina. 5. On 25 November 1994 the applicant brought a civil action against the company V. (“the employer”) and the insurance company C.O. in the Zagreb Municipal Court (Općinski sud u Zagrebu) seeking damages for a work-related injury in the amount of 96,700 Croatian kunas (HRK). 6.  The court held hearings on 2 June and 30 November 1999 and 21 February 2001. 7.  In the period between May 1998 and October 2000 the applicant filed four rush notes urging the court to schedule a hearing and speed up the proceedings. 8.  On 21 February 2001 the Municipal Court gave judgment dismissing the applicant’s claim. The applicant appealed on 6 March 2001 to the Zagreb County Court (Županijski sud u Zagrebu). 9.  On 26 March 2001 the applicant applied to be exempted from the court fee for the appeal. Since it was the Municipal Court that was competent to decide on the applicant’s request for exemption, the County Court returned the case-file to it with a view to reaching a decision thereon. A hearing before the Municipal Court scheduled for 14 January 2003 was adjourned since the applicant had not received the summons due to his change of address. The next hearing scheduled for 3 June 2003 was adjourned owing to the illness of the judge assigned to hear the case. Lastly, a hearing at which the applicant gave a declaration of his income and assets was held on 13 May 2004. On 24 May 2004 the applicant was served with the decision in his favour exempting him from the court fee for the appeal. The case-file was then sent back to the County Court with a view to deciding on the applicant’s appeal. 10.  On 5 April 2005 the County Court dismissed the appeal. The judgment was served on the applicant on 25 April 2005. No appeal on points of law (revizija) lay to the Supreme Court against this judgment (see paragraph 14 below). 11.  Meanwhile, on 23 July 2002 the applicant lodged a constitutional complaint with the Constitutional Court (Ustavni sud Republike Hrvatske) complaining about the length of the civil proceedings. 12.  On 17 April 2003 the Constitutional Court dismissed the applicant’s complaint. It held that the delay was attributable to the complexity of the case and the applicant’s conduct. It found that the applicant had contributed to the length of the proceedings in that he had applied for exemption from the court fee only after he had appealed against the first-instance judgment.


5.  The applicant was born in 1972 and lives in the town of Irkutsk. 6.  On 22 December 1999 the Sverdlovskiy District Court of the Irkutsk Region convicted the applicant of theft and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment. On 11 April 2000 the Irkutsk Regional Court upheld the judgment. 7.  On 7 June 2001 the applicant asked the President of the Regional Court to apply for supervisory review of the above judgments on a number of legal grounds. After leave had been granted, on 2 July 2001 the Presidium of the Regional Court upheld the conviction but reduced the applicant’s sentence to four years and six months because of an error in the calculation of the term. The applicant was not brought to the hearing. 8.  The applicant made further attempts to obtain a review of his conviction and sentence. Apparently in reply to one of those applications, by a letter of 18 November 2002 the Irkutsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office notified the applicant that they had applied for supervisory review of the judgments of 22 December 1999 and 11 April 2000. It appears that the scope of the application for review was limited to an argument that the trial court had erred in determining the prison regime to be applied to the applicant without having regard to the cancellation of his conviction in 1992 for another offence. The applicant received that letter on 22 November 2002. 9.  It appears that on 6 December 2002 the applicant submitted his observations in relation to that request. However, in the meantime, on 2 December 2002 the Presidium of the Regional Court had already examined the supervisory review application and found that the 1992 conviction had been cancelled in 1997 and should not have been taken into consideration when the trial court decided whether there had been a repeated commission of a criminal offence (recidivism). It concluded that the applicant’s acts had constituted dangerous rather than “particularly” dangerous recidivism, and changed the type of the correctional facility in which the applicant was to serve his sentence. The Presidium upheld the judgments of 22 December 1999 and 7 June 2001 in the remaining part. The applicant was not brought to that hearing. On 30 December 2002 he was told that the review had taken place, but a copy of the decision was not given to him. 10.  The applicant served his sentence in correctional colony no. UK-272/25 situated in the village of Vikhorevka in the Irkutsk Region. 11.  According to the applicant, on 7 September 2001 the colony administration informed the detainees that a special-purpose squad would be brought to the colony “to discipline detainees”. 12.  On 21 September 2001 five officers of the special-purpose squad arrived at the colony in order to “render practical assistance in carrying out searches and prophylactic measures”.  On the same day the wardens and the officers of the squad searched the applicant’s cell. The applicant objected to the search and the officers intimidated him, beat him up and damaged his personal belongings. The applicant received no medical assistance and the colony doctor refused to record his injuries. The colony administration subsequently refused to dispatch his complaints to the prosecutor. 13.  According to the Government, the Director of the Regional Department for Execution of Sentences of the Ministry of Justice ordered a series of searches in detention facilities with a view to seizing unauthorised items kept by detainees in their cells which could be used for an escape. 14.  Searches were carried out in the applicant’s cell on 10 and 21 September 2001. According to a report dated 10 September 2001, the use of force was accounted for by the applicant’s insults to officers. A report drawn up on 21 September 2001 indicated that the applicant had uttered insults and threats of reprisals. The Government submitted copies of reports by two officers to their superior, stating that during the search on 21 September 2001 the applicant had uttered insults and threats of reprisals to the officers. Another officer stated that the applicant had objected to the search and had swung his hands; because of his refusal to stop after a warning, his hand had been held behind his back, he “had been held in a posture preventing resistance” and had been placed in a separate room pending the search in his cell. A report drawn up by the colony medical assistant indicated that no injuries had been detected on the applicant’s body. 15.  Several detainees complained to the Bratsk Prosecutor’s Office, in charge of supervising penitentiary institutions, about the events of 10 and 21 September 2001. They alleged that they and certain other detainees, including the applicant, had been beaten up by the squad members, with the tacit agreement of the colony administration. 16.  On 21 January 2002 the Bratsk Penitentiary Supervising Prosecutor’s Office refused to initiate criminal proceedings against the squad members. The assistant prosecutor indicated that the squad intervention had been duly authorised by the Regional Department for Execution of Sentences on 6 and 13 September 2001 (decrees nos. 385 and 398). The squad officers wore camouflage with their ID numbers and balaclava masks. On 10 September 2001 during the search of his cell the applicant had refused to comply with orders (to stay in the corridor against the wall), and had threatened the officers with reprisals, insulting them and pushing them away. Therefore, on an order from the colony chief officer the applicant was immobilised. During another cell search on 21 September 2001 the applicant behaved in the same way and also incited other detainees to riot. In order to put a stop to his actions he was immobilised. Special means and weapons were not used. The assistant prosecutor interrogated the complainants and other detainees, some of whom however had stated that special means or weapons had been used against detainees. 17.  On 28 February 2002, on a complaint by the applicant, an official of the Irkutsk Regional Department for Execution of Sentences informed him as follows. On 21 September 2001 five officers of the special-purpose squad had arrived in the colony. The applicant prevented the wardens from carrying out searches and assaulted them verbally and physically. Following the searches, the doctor visited the detainees to find out if they had sustained any injuries. The detainees did not make any complaints or requests.


5.  The applicant was born in 1990 and lives in Narva. 6.  On 17 September 2012 the applicant, in misdemeanour proceedings, was fined 80 euros (EUR) by a police officer of the East Prefecture of the Police and Border Guard Board for a breach of public order (breaking a glass panel of a bus shelter). 7.  The applicant contested this decision before the Viru County Court. He argued that he had not committed the act in question and challenged the assessment of witness statements. He complained about the failure of the police to present him to a witness for identification. Lastly, he complained that the police had not indicated in its decision the specific provisions of the local rules on public order which he had allegedly breached. 8.  The County Court sent summons to the applicant for a hearing scheduled for 21 March 2013 at 12.30 p.m. It was noted in the summons that the applicant’s participation in the hearing was mandatory. Furthermore, it was noted, with reference to Article 126 § 2 of the Code of Misdemeanour Procedure (Väärteomenetluse seadustik), that if a complainant failed to appear at the hearing, although he had been notified of the obligation to participate, and the hearing was not adjourned, the court would refuse to examine the complaint. The applicant’s counsel, a representative of the police prefecture and witnesses were also summoned. 9.  The summons sent to the applicant’s address, which he had used throughout the proceedings and which had been indicated in his complaint, could not be served on him personally as he was not present on 4 February 2013 when the court’s security officer attempted to serve the summons. His mother refused to accept the summons and said that the applicant was living abroad. The applicant’s counsel received the summons on 8 February 2013. The witnesses also received the summons in the beginning of February. 10.  On 20 March 2013 the County Court issued a ruling by which the applicant’s complaint was admitted for the proceedings. According to the ruling the hearing was scheduled for 21 March 2013 at 12.30 p.m. and the names of persons to be summoned to the hearing were set out. 11.  On 21 March 2013 the County Court held its hearing. The applicant did not appear. His counsel asked the court to examine the matter without the applicant’s presence as the applicant was abroad and it was not known when he would return to Estonia. According to the applicant’s father, who was in the courtroom as a spectator, the applicant was not to return to Estonia within the next five years. The County Court refused to examine the applicant’s complaint. It delivered its decision in writing on 2 April 2013. 12.  According to the County Court’s decision, the applicant had failed to inform the authorities of his new address. However, as the applicant’s father was aware of the time of the court hearing and of the applicant’s intention not to return to Estonia within the next five years, the court concluded that the applicant’s parents were communicating both with the applicant and his counsel. Thus, the applicant must have been aware of the court hearing and summons sent to him. 13.  The County Court found that in view of the substance of the misdemeanour case and the court’s duty to hear a misdemeanour matter in its entirety, regardless of the limits of the complaint filed, and to verify the factual and legal circumstances on the basis of which the body conducting the extra-judicial proceedings (that is, the police) had made its decision, it was not possible to examine the case without the applicant’s participation. It noted that one of the complaints made by the applicant had been that the body conducting the extra-judicial proceedings had not presented the applicant for identification to the witness. Thus, interviewing of the applicant and presenting him for recognition to the witness were important steps for the adjudication of the matter which could not be accomplished without the applicant’s participation. The court considered that adjourning the hearing would serve no purpose since the applicant was not to return to Estonia within a month – the time-limit for which a hearing could be adjourned under the law of procedure. Moreover, the applicant’s counsel had not requested an adjournment but examination of the complaint without the applicant’s presence. However, for the above reasons the court did not consider it possible to examine the case without the applicant. Relying on Article 126 § 2 of the Code of Misdemeanour Procedure – which provided that if a complainant failed to appear at the hearing although he had been notified of the obligation to participate in the court hearing – the County Court refused to examine the complaint. 14.  The applicant’s counsel appealed, relying, inter alia, on Article 6 § 3 (c) of the Convention according to which a person had the right to defend himself through legal assistance of his own choosing. The receipt of the summons was not disputed. 15.  On 23 May 2013 the Tartu Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal and upheld the ruling of the first-instance court. It noted that under Article 126 § 1 of the Code of Misdemeanour Procedure the court could decide on a discretionary basis whether a complainant’s participation in the court hearing was necessary and, if needed, oblige the person in question to appear. In the case at hand the County Court had given reasons as to why the applicant’s participation was required and it was not possible to examine the case in his absence. The Court of Appeal pointed out that the applicant had challenged in his complaint to the County Court the failure of the police to present him to witnesses for identification. It was, however, unclear, how the County Court could have eliminated this deficiency in the applicant’s absence. 16.  No appeal lay against the Court of Appeal’s ruling.


4.  The applicant was born in 1933 and lives in the town of Sergiyev Posad in the Moscow Region. 5.  In 1988 the applicant gave up his post in the Zagorskiy engineering plant in order to be appointed to a similar position in a car manufacturing enterprise, ATP-11 (“ATP-11”). The latter refused to appoint the applicant to the position sought. 6.  On an unspecified date in 1988 the applicant sued ATP-11, seeking that it complied with the agreement for his appointment to the post. 7.  On 4 January 1989 the Zagorsk Town Court dismissed his claims. The Moscow Regional Court upheld the judgment on 2 February 1989. On 4 May 1989 the Presidium of the Regional Court quashed the judgments by way of supervisory review and remitted the case for a new examination. 8.  By a judgment of 27 June 1989, the Town Court rejected the applicant’s claims. On 14 July 1989 the Regional Court upheld the judgment. 9.  On 7 June 1990 the Supreme Court of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (“the RSFSR Supreme Court”) quashed the judgments of 27 June and 14 July 1989 and remitted the case to the Town Court for a fresh examination. 10.  On 28 December 1990 Judge M. of the Town Court listed a hearing for 9 January 1991. 11.  At a hearing of 23 January 1991 the applicant amended his claims and claimed compensation for forced absence from work due to the ATP-11’s unlawful refusal to appoint him to the post. 12.  On 7 May 1991 judge M. instituted criminal proceedings against the applicant on suspicion that he had stolen the case file concerning his employment dispute. 13.  On 1 November 1991 the deputy prosecutor of the Moscow Regional prosecutor’s office informed the applicant that there were no reasons to set aside the decision of 7 May 1991. He also noted that the local justice department had been ordered to take immediate measures to restore the materials of the case file in respect of the applicant’s employment dispute. 14.  On 19 March 1998 the Mytishchi Town Court of the Moscow Region acquitted the applicant for lack of evidence. The judgment became final on 27 March 1998. 15.  In the meantime, on 8 April 1992 the applicant requested the President of the Town Court (renamed the Sergiyev Posad Town Court after the town of Zagorsk had been renamed Sergiyev Posad) to restore the case file regarding his employment dispute and to pursue its examination of his claims against ATP-11. The applicant submitted the receipt card showing that the request had been received by the Town Court on 14 April 1992. On 6 May 1992 the President informed the applicant that his employment claims would be adjudicated after the examination of the criminal case against him. 16.  On 1 June 1993 and 1 March 1994 respectively the Regional Court forwarded to the Town Court repeated requests by the applicant for restoration of the case file (заявление о восстановлении утраченного судебного производства) with a view to proceeding with the examination of his employment dispute, further to the decision of 7 June 1990. Those requests were accompanied by the documents from the file preserved by the applicant. In its letter of 1 March 1994 the court noted that in case of dismissal of the applicant’s request to restore the case file the courts were to advise the applicant on his right to re-submit his employment dispute to the courts by means of ordinary civil proceedings. It appears that no action was taken in response to the above requests. 17.  By decision of 1 April 1994, the Town Court refused to examine the applicant’s requests to restore the case file, as formulated in his application of 20 January 1994 and a telegram of 26 March 1994 respectively. The court referred to the ongoing criminal proceedings and held that it could not examine the applicant’s requests until his exculpation. 18.  On 13 October 1994 the Presidium of the Regional Court quashed the decision of 1 April 1994 and remitted the matter to the Town Court for a fresh examination. 19.  By letter of 20 February 1995, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation advised the applicant that the Presidium of the Regional Court had forwarded his request for restoration of the case file to the Town Court for a fresh examination. 20.  On 25 September 1996 the Regional Court forwarded to the President of the Town Court a complaint by the applicant about the failure to examine his request for restoration of the case file, as ordered by the decision of 13 October 1994. The Regional Court noted that, according to the Town Court’s registry, the related proceedings were still pending before the Town Court. 21.  On 5 May 1998 the Convention entered into force in respect of Russia. 22.  On 6 July 1998 the Regional Court forwarded to the Town Court a further complaint by the applicant about the failure to examine his requests for restoration of the case file. It ordered the Town Court to take all necessary measures with a view to pursuing the examination of the applicant’s request. 23.  By decision of 10 November 1998, the Town Court refused to restore the case file concerning the applicant’s employment dispute. The court noted that it had returned to the applicant the documents lodged in March 1994 after the decision of 1 April 1994 had become legally binding. The applicant had not complied with the court’s requests to re-submit them. Instead of rectifying the shortcomings, the applicant had chosen to complain to higher courts, declaring that the documents were already with the Town Court. In the absence of the relevant documents and any intention on the part of the applicant to submit them, it had to terminate the proceedings. It advised the applicant that it was open to him to re-submit his employment dispute to the Town Court. 24.  It appears that the applicant was not present at the hearing and was not served with a copy of the decision of 11 November 1998. The decision was not appealed against and became final on 22 November 1998. 25.  On 10 February 2002 the applicant renewed his request to the Town Court to restore his case file and to adjudicate his employment dispute. 26.  By a decision of 26 August 2002 the Town Court dismissed the applicant’s request. It noted that the applicant had asked it to restore the file and had submitted copies of documents related to his employment dispute. However, those documents had not been duly certified. They had been partly typewritten and partly handwritten by the applicant, which cast doubt on their authenticity. The applicant had not submitted any other documents and the court itself had been unable to obtain any documents. ATP-11 had been declared insolvent. Eleven years had passed since the case file had been stolen and the applicant had requested to restore it only in 2002. It was impossible to examine authentic written exhibits (evidence) related to the applicant’s labour action. The court finally noted that it was open to the applicant to re-submit his employment dispute to the Town Court. 27.  On 14 October 2002 the Regional Court upheld the decision. It appears that the applicant was provided with both decisions in due time.


5.  The applicant, Mr Ivan Trofimovich Varanitsa, is a Ukrainian national, who was born in 1934 and currently resides in Krasnoarmeysk, in the Donetsk Region. 6.  On 19 January 2000 the Krasnoarmeysk City Court ordered the State mine “Rodinskaya” (the “Mine”) to pay the applicant UAH 2,961.35[1] in compensation for salary arrears. On the same date the court delivered writs of execution to the applicant. The judgment became final on 31 January 2000. 7.  On 14 February 2000 the Krasnoarmeysk City Bailiffs initiated the enforcement of the judgment of 19 January 2000. The enforcement was suspended on the same date due to the bankruptcy proceedings concerning the Mine pending before the Donetsk Regional Court of Arbitration. 8.  On 6 June 2000 the Krasnoarmeysk City Bailiffs reinitiated the enforcement proceedings in the applicant’s case. 9.  On 10 April 2001 the Donetsk Regional Court of Arbitration declared the Mine bankrupt. On 19 June 2001 this decision was quashed by the same court. 10.  On 18, 20 and 25 March 2002 the Krasnoarmeysk City Deparment of Justice, the Department of Justice for the Donetsk Region, informed the applicant that the judgment could not be executed due to the Mine’s lack of funds. 11.  On 9 April 2002 the Krasnoarmeysk City Department of Justice informed the applicant that the Mine had been receiving funds from the State budget in order to pay salary arrears. It also informed the applicant that the Mine’s property could not be attached and that the Execution Service was presently executing earlier writs issued against the Mine in 1998. 12.  On 21 August 2002 the applicant was paid UAH 58.26.[2] 13.  On 23 August 2002 the applicant received UAH 25.52[3]. The remainder of the unpaid debt was therefore UAH 2,877.57[4]. 14.  In August 2003 the mine paid the remainder of the debt to the applicant, which was by then UAH 2,961.35[5]. 15.  On 11 August 2003 the Krasnoarmeysk City Department of Justice terminated the enforcement proceedings in view of the full execution of the judgment of 19 January 2000. 16.  On 8 October 2003 the applicant informed the Court that the judgment given in his favour had been enforced in full. However, he still requested compensation for moral damage for the State’s failure to enforce the judgment for three years and eight months.


4.  The applicant was born in 1945 and lives in Varna. 5.  The applicant worked as a stoker at the Varna port. In 1999 he was dismissed as new requirements he did not meet were introduced for his position. 6.  On an unspecified date in October 1999 the applicant brought an action for unfair dismissal alleging that: 1) the dismissal order had not been reasoned; 2) it had been indicated in it that it had been effective as of a date preceding the date when it had been issued; and 3) it had not been necessary to change the requirements for his position. 7.  In a judgment of the Varna District Court of 8 June 2000, upheld by the Varna Regional Court on 12 January 2001, the applicant's dismissal was found to be unlawful. 8.  Upon appeal by the applicant's former employer, in a judgment of 8 May 2002 the Supreme Court of Cassation quashed the Regional Court's judgment, finding that the latter had misapplied the law. 9.  Following a fresh examination of the case, on 1 August 2002 the Varna Regional Court delivered a new judgment whereby it dismissed the applicant's claim. 10.  On 3 September 2002 the applicant appealed in cassation. 11.  The Supreme Court of Cassation held a hearing to examine the applicant's appeal on 14 October 2004. In a final judgment of 19 November 2004 it upheld the Regional Court's judgment and dismissed the applicant's arguments in respect of the alleged unlawfulness of the dismissal order, finding that: 1) the order indicated the legal ground for the applicant's dismissal, namely that he did not meet the relevant requirements; this represented sufficient reasoning in the case; 2) the order had entered into force on the date it had been served on him, any other date indicated in it as a date of entry into force was irrelevant; and 3) the applicant's former employer had enjoyed discretion, which could not be subject to judicial review, to set the requirements for the applicant's position. 12.  In December 2004 and February 2005 the applicant requested the Varna District Court, where the case file was to be archived, for copies of all court judgments in the case. According to him, the District Court refused to provide him with a copy of the judgment of the Varna Regional Court of 12 January 2001 (see paragraph 7 above). Nevertheless, the applicant has enclosed a copy of the said judgment with his application.


5.  The applicant was born in 1958 and lives in Hajnówka. 6.  On 23 August 2000 the Bielsko Podlaskie District Court convicted the applicant of theft and sentenced him to 2 years' imprisonment. On 12 December 2000 the Białystok Regional Court upheld the first‑instance judgment. 7.  On 12 January 2001 the court granted the applicant's request to assign a legal-aid lawyer to the case for the purposes of filing a cassation appeal with the Supreme Court. 8.  In a letter to the applicant dated 7 February 2001 the Białystok Regional Court informed him that the legal‑aid lawyer had found no grounds on which to prepare a cassation appeal. The applicant was not informed of the further procedural steps available to him to lodge a cassation appeal. 9.  In reply to the applicant's subsequent three queries as to what his procedural situation was and whether there was any possibility for him to pursue the cassation proceedings, in particular by having his own draft of a cassation appeal signed by another legal-aid lawyer, on 19 February, 23 and 29 May 2001 the Regional Court stated that it was not for the court to oblige a legal‑aid lawyer to prepare a cassation appeal if he or she had refused to do so and that it was impossible for a lawyer to sign a cassation appeal drafted by the defendant.


4.  The applicant was born in 1955 in Estonia and lives in Tartu. 5.  In 1995 or 1996 the applicant lodged an application with the Public Prosecutor’s Office in which he requested that criminal proceedings be initiated against four persons, including two police officers. The applicant had allegedly been beaten by these men. A prosecutor refused to initiate criminal proceedings. 6.  Subsequently, the same four persons made a report concerning an offence allegedly committed by the applicant. They argued that the applicant had submitted false accusations concerning the beating. On 8 October 1996 criminal proceedings were instituted against the applicant under Article 174 § 1 (submitting knowingly false accusations concerning the commission of a criminal offence by another person) of the Criminal Code (Kriminaalkoodeks). 7.  In the following years, the applicant repeatedly failed to appear at the police prefecture when summoned. On several occasions it proved to be impossible to compel him by force to appear (sundtoomine), as he was not present at the address he had indicated and his whereabouts were unknown. On some occasions, when the authorities found him, he refused to familiarise himself with the charges, to give statements or to sign an undertaking not to leave his place of residence (allkiri elukohast mittelahkumise kohta). 8.  According to a forensic psychiatric expert opinion given in 2000 on the request of an investigator, the applicant was not mentally unsound but had a paranoid personality disorder. He was considered to be able to give statements, attend court hearings and serve any punishment. 9.  Also in 2000 a new criminal case was instituted against the applicant, again under Article 174 § 1 of the Criminal Code. The case was joined with the case initiated in 1996. 10.  In 2000 and 2001 the period of the preliminary investigation was extended repeatedly due to the applicant’s alleged ill-health. On 28 November 2001 he was compelled by the police to appear in the police prefecture. On the next day, he was presented with the formal charges under Article 174 § 1 of the Criminal Code. He refused to make any statements, to familiarise himself with any documents or to sign them. 11.  On 15 January 2002 the prosecutor approved the summary of charges and the criminal case file was sent to the Tartu County Court (Tartu Maakohus). 12.  On 17 January 2002 the County Court committed the applicant for trial and maintained the signed undertaking not to leave his residence as a preventive measure against him. The hearing was scheduled for 26 March 2002.
By a letter of 24 March 2002 the applicant informed the court that he could not participate in the hearing due to his ill-health. He requested that the hearing be adjourned.
On 26 March 2002 the hearing was adjourned due to the absence of the applicant and a new hearing was scheduled for 13 June 2002. The court decided that the applicant should be compelled by the police to appear before it on that date.
As the police was unable to find the applicant and to secure his attendance at the court hearing on 13 June 2002, the hearing was adjourned until 30 September 2002. The court again decided that the applicant had to be compelled by the police to appear in court. 13.  On 30 September 2002 the applicant failed to appear in court. The police had been unable to secure his attendance, as during repeated checks no one had opened the door at his residence. The applicant’s appointed lawyer, the prosecutor and one of the victims had appeared before the court. The County Court decided to adjourn the hearing and to declare the applicant a fugitive. It decided that when found he should be taken into custody (vahi alla võtmine) and that a new hearing would be scheduled then. The court relied on Articles 66, 68, 73 § 1, 209, 218 and 223 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Kriminaalmenetluse koodeks). 14.  The applicant was taken into custody on 2 October 2002 in Tallinn. 15.  He subsequently lodged a complaint addressed to the Tartu Court of Appeal (Tartu Ringkonnakohus). As stated by the applicant in the complaint, “[it was] handed over on 05.10.2002, in the presence of witnesses, to the officer in charge of the Arrest House of the Tallinn Police Prefecture to be transmitted to the Tartu Court of Appeal”.
A copy of the complaint submitted to the Court by the Government bears a handwritten note “Complaint received. Tartu County Court. 10.10.02” and a seal and signature of a judge of the County Court.
According to the complaint, the deprivation of the applicant’s liberty was unlawful, as he had not been presented with the decision of the County Court on the basis of which he had been arrested. Moreover, the decision had been taken by the County Court in his absence. He alleged that the registration of his residence at the address where the City Court had sent the summonses had been cancelled. He noted that, according to the Civil Code (General Principles) Act (Tsiviilseadustiku üldosa seadus), in case the residence of a person could not be determined, the place where he or she was actually staying should be deemed his or her residence. On 2 October 2002 he had stayed in Tallinn and prior to that in Tartu. However, he had not received the summonses. He requested that he be immediately released from custody and that the County Court’s decision concerning his arrest be invalidated. 16.  The applicant was kept in custody until 17 October 2002. On that date the Tartu County Court held a hearing in the presence of the applicant, his appointed lawyer and the prosecutor. The court decided that, as the applicant and his lawyer had not familiarised themselves with the case file, the hearing had to be adjourned. As the applicant alleged that he had not received the summons for the hearing of 30 September 2002 and promised to appear before the court when invited in the future, he was released from custody. The court applied a more lenient preventive measure in respect of the applicant – a signed undertaking not to leave his place of residence. 17.  On 5 November 2002 the Tartu Court of Appeal adjourned the hearing concerning the applicant’s appeal against the County Court’s decision of 30 September 2002, since the applicant’s lawyer had not appeared.
On the same day the Court of Appeal received the applicant’s amendments to his appeal. He alleged, inter alia, that he had never signed an undertaking not to leave his place of residence and claimed compensation for his unlawful detention. 18.  On 11 November 2002 the Court of Appeal held a hearing and dismissed the applicant’s appeal. It noted that, under Article 73 § 1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, preventive custody could be applied in order to prevent a defendant at trial from evading the criminal proceedings or committing a new crime. It held that the County Court had had good grounds to believe that the applicant was evading the criminal proceedings and that he was in breach of a signed undertaking not to leave his place of residence. He had not reacted to summonses sent to his place of residence and had not answered phone calls. The fact that the applicant had been taken into custody had made it possible, on 17 October 2002, to conduct a hearing, after which the applicant had been released. In respect of the applicant’s allegation that he had never signed an undertaking not to leave his place of residence, the Court of Appeal established, based on the case file, that the applicant had been presented with a decision according to which a prohibition to leave his place of residence had been applied as a preventive measure. The fact that the applicant had refused to sign it could not be interpreted to mean that the measure had not been applied. The preventive measure in the form of a signed undertaking not to leave one’s place of residence was not meant to restrict one’s freedom of movement; its purpose was rather to keep the court informed of the person’s whereabouts so that the criminal proceedings could be conducted without delays. However, in the particular instance, the criminal case could not be conducted without delays, as the applicant had failed to comply with the preventive measure applied under Article 69 § 1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The Court of Appeal noted that it was not possible in those proceedings concerning the appeal against the County Court’s ruling to decide on the compensation claim for damage.
Under the provisions of the applicable criminal procedure law, the decision of the Court of Appeal was final. 19.  In late 2003 and 2004 the hearings in the criminal case were repeatedly adjourned, mainly due to the applicant’s failure to appear before the court and to comply with the court’s orders concerning his forensic psychiatric expert examination. At the same time, the applicant lodged numerous complaints and appeals against various institutions. 20.  According to a forensic psychiatric examination’s report of 3 August 2005, the state of the applicant’s mind did not allow him to understand and control his acts. He was considered to be unable to give statements before a court or to serve punishment. His compulsory treatment was deemed to be unnecessary, as he presented no danger to himself or to society. 21.  By a decision of 21 September 2005, the County Court found it established that the applicant had committed the acts that he had been charged with. However, since his state of mind had deteriorated, as evidenced by the forensic psychiatric examination’s report, and he was unable to give statements before a court and serve punishment, the criminal proceedings were discontinued. The decision could be appealed against within ten days. 22.  By a decision of 27 September 2005, the Supreme Court (Riigikohus) rejected the applicant’s appeal against several decisions of lower courts, including the Court of Appeal’s decision of 11 November 2002. It held that only a lawyer – and not the applicant himself – could appeal against a decision of an appellate court. Moreover, the above decision of the Court of Appeal had been final according to the applicable criminal procedure law. 23.  On 22 October 2005 the applicant lodged an appeal against the County Court’s decision of 21 September 2005.


9.  The applicant was born in 1966 and lives in Silopi. 10.  On 28 April 1992 the applicant was taken into police custody on suspicion of having been involved in the terrorist activities of the PKK (Workers' Party of Kurdistan), proscribed as a terrorist organisation under Turkish law. 11.  On 25 May 1992 the applicant was brought before the Diyarbakır Public Prosecutor. He denied the allegations against him. On the same day, a judge at the Şırnak Magistrates' Court (sulh ceza mahkemesi) ordered the applicant's detention on remand. 12.  On 1 September 1992 the public prosecutor filed an indictment charging the applicant with treason under Article 125 of the Criminal Code. 13.  On 12 October 1994 the public prosecutor filed a new indictment, charging the applicant under the same provision of the Criminal Code with involvement in other terrorist activities. 14.  On 28 May 1995, upon the request of the public prosecutor, the applicant's case was joined to another case which was being considered in a different chamber of the Diyarbakır State Security Court. 15.  On 3 July 1998 the Diyarbakır State Security Court convicted the applicant under Article 125 of the Criminal Code of treason and sentenced him to life imprisonment. 16.  The applicant's sentence was automatically referred to the Court of Cassation for appeal. The applicant's request for a hearing on his appeal was granted. On 27 October 1999 the Court of Cassation upheld the judgment of the Diyarbakır State Security Court.


4.  In March 1993 welding work was carried out in the applicant’s fashion boutique. On 26 May 1995 the applicant filed an action for damages against the company which had carried out the welding work. She alleged that the welding work had soiled stored clothes and the salesroom of her boutique and had affected her health. The Salzburg Regional Court (Landesgericht), upon her request, had previously granted her legal aid for these proceedings on 4 May 1995. 5.  On 29 August 1995 the Salzburg Regional Court held a first hearing. 6.  On 6 October 1995 it appointed an expert and instructed him to prepare a report. The expert delivered his report on 29 January 1997. 7.  On 2 June 1997 the court held a further hearing. It heard some witnesses and then adjourned the proceedings to hear the expert and further witnesses. On the same day the defendant challenged the expert for bias. The court dismissed this motion on 19 September 1997. 8.  On 17 December 1997 the court held another hearing and heard further witnesses and the expert. It also ordered the parties to submit their extensive questions in writing and, on 3 February 1998, instructed the expert to supplement his opinion. 9.  On 6 July 1998 the expert delivered his supplementary opinion. On 16 November 1998 the court held a hearing and, upon the applicant’s request, decided to appoint a further expert in order to assess the amount of damages. It further requested the applicant to declare whether she still claimed damages for injuries to her health. The proceedings were adjourned in order to appoint the expert and to hear a witness who had not appeared. 10.  In a statement of 14 January 1999 the applicant declared that she maintained her claim for damages as regards injuries to her health. 11.  On 4 March 1999 the court, noting that the applicant had made incorrect statements when declaring her financial situation, withdrew the legal aid granted to her. On 20 April 1999 the Linz Court of Appeal confirmed this decision. Subsequently, on 18 May 1999 the Salzburg Regional Court imposed a fine on the applicant for abuse of process. It further informed the parties that it considered it necessary to decide first whether the claim for damages was well-founded in principle before ordering further expert opinions. 12.  On 2 July 1999 the court dismissed the applicant’s further request for legal aid. On 9 August 1999 the Linz Court of Appeal confirmed this decision. 13.  Meanwhile, on 26 July 1999 the applicant filed an application under Section 91 of the Courts Act (Gerichtsorganisationsgesetz). In particular, she requested that the Regional Court be ordered to hold a further hearing, to question the witness H. and to take a decision. The Regional Court subsequently scheduled a hearing for 10 November 1999. On 17 August 1999 the Linz Court of Appeal dismissed the application. It found that, until the hearing of 17 December 1997, the court had been mainly concerned with obtaining the necessary expert opinions. There were no delays either during this period, or during the following period until the hearing of 16 November 1998. Subsequently, a number of procedural steps were taken by the applicant relating to the withdrawal of legal aid. Having regard to the circumstances of the case, the Regional Court had not been dilatory. 14.  The applicant subsequently challenged the competent judge S. and, in a letter of 15 October 1999, complained that S. had not cancelled the hearing of 10 November 1999. On 15 November 1999 the applicant requested that records prepared in1994 in connection with her legal aid case be rectified. 15.  On 16 December 1999 the Salzburg Regional Court sitting with three judges dismissed the applicant’s challenge as unfounded but found that judge S. was biased according to his own declaration (Befangenheitsanzeige). On 7 March 2000 the Linz Court of Appeal confirmed this decision. 16.  On 28 April and on 30 May 2000, the Salzburg Regional Court, presided over by another judge, held oral hearings. On 31 August 2000, upon the parties’ requests, the court appointed two further experts. On 11 December 2000 both of the experts delivered their reports. 17.  On 9 February 2001 the court, presided over by another judge, held another hearing and heard one expert. During this hearing the applicant’s counsel declared that he would inform the court of the outcome of friendly settlement discussions within four weeks. The court adjourned the proceedings sine die in order to obtain an opinion of another expert. 18.  On 22 March 2001 the applicant requested the court to hear another witness. On 3 April 2001 the applicant’s counsel requested the court not to schedule any hearings because of ongoing friendly settlement discussions. The applicant’s counsel repeated this request on 23 August 2001, 25 September 2001, 17 December 2001, 26 February 2002 and on 17 May 2002. In the meantime, on 31 August 2001, the defendant’s counsel had informed the applicant’s counsel that the defendant did not agree with their proposal for a friendly settlement. 19.  On 5 December 2002 the applicant’s counsel requested the court to hold a further hearing. On 21 January 2003 and on 25 April 2003 the court held further hearings. 20.  On 15 July 2003 the Regional Court dismissed the applicant’s claim. It noted that the applicant’s claim had become time-barred as the applicant had not duly continued the proceedings after friendly settlement negotiations had failed in August 2001. 21.  On 14 October 2003 the Vienna Court of Appeal dismissed the applicant’s appeal. 22.  On 3 December 2003 the Supreme Court rejected the applicant’s extraordinary appeal.