LIBRARY

Procedure before the ECHR

Posted on by Tatev Matinyan

The Central Office sorts the mail and sends your application to the legal division whose job it is to deal with it, that is, the legal division responsible for the State against which the application is lodged. An application against Germany, for example, will be sent to the legal division that deals with German cases, because the people working in that division speak German and are familiar with the country’s legislation. Your case will then be given a number and examined by a lawyer. This does not necessarily mean that the Court has accepted your application; it just means that it has been registered. If the Court contacts you, you must reply within the specified time, otherwise your file may simply be rejected or destroyed. Once the Court has all the information it needs to examine your case, your application will be allocated to one of the Court’s judicial formations. Throughout the proceedings, even if they seem to be taking a long time, you must wait for the Court to contact you. Because of the large number of applications it receives every year (over 50,000) and the even larger number of cases pending before it, the Court cannot acknowledge receipt of the letters and documents it receives or tell you approximately when your case will be examined. The proceedings before the Court are in writing. Any information you wish to bring to the Court’s attention must be communicated in writing.

 

https://www.echr.coe.int/Pages/home.aspx?p=applicants/application

 

How to lodge an application

Posted on by Tatev Matinyan

The application form should be downloaded, completed, printed out and sent by post to the Court with the necessary documents. No other form must be used.

The form will work correctly only with Adobe Reader 9 upwards and is only supported under the Windows and Mac OS X operating systems. Please ensure you have Adobe Reader installed on your computer (download available from www.adobe.com).

1. Save a copy of the form

  • Right-click on the link or icon above
  • According to your browser, choose one of available options “Save target as”, “Save Link As” or “Download Linked File As…”
  • Save the form on your computer in a chosen location.

2. Fill in the form

  • Open the saved copy of the form in Adobe Reader from the chosen location
  • Fill in the form and save it.
  • Once you have completed the form, you should print it, sign it and post it to the Court.

Application_Form_ENG (4)

How to make a valid application

Posted on by Tatev Matinyan

If you decide to apply to the Court, please ensure that your application complies with Rule 47 of the Rules of Court, which sets out the information and documents that must be provided.

Failure to provide any of the information or documents required by Rule 47 §§ 1 and 2 will result in the complaints not being examined by the Court. It is imperative that all fields in the application form are filled in.

A valid application will be examined by the Court; this does not mean that the application will be declared admissible.

PD_institution_proceedings_ENG

Rule_47_ENG

Badalyan v. Azerbaijan (Application no. 51295/11)

Posted on by Tatev Matinyan

The applicant, Artur Badalyan, is an Armenian national who was born in in 1978 and lives in
Haghartsin in the Tavush region of Armenia.
The case concerns the applicant’s complaint that the Azerbaijani forces arrested him near the border
between Armenia and Azerbaijan and held him captive for 22 months.
Relying on Article 3 (prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment) of the Convention,
Mr Badalyan alleges that he was ill-treated during his detention, leaving him with serious
mental-health issues upon his release.
Also relying on Article 5 (right to liberty and security), he alleges that his detention was unlawful. He
argues in particular that as a civilian and not a prisoner of war he should have been immediately
released or informed of the reasons for his detention in a language that he understood, brought
before a judge and given the possibility to challenge the lawfulness of his detention.
Violation Article 3
Violation of Article 5
Just satisfaction:
non-pecuniary damage: EUR 30,000

https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng#{%22docname%22:[%22Badalyan%20v%20Azerbaijan%22],%22documentcollectionid2%22:[%22GRANDCHAMBER%22,%22CHAMBER%22],%22itemid%22:[%22001-211103%22]}

Avanesyan v. Armenia (application no. 12999/15)

Posted on by Tatev Matinyan

The applicant, Artur Avanesyan, is an Armenian national who was born in 1995 and lives in Masis
(Armenia).
The case concerns the applicant’s refusal to perform military service because, as a Jehovah’s
Witness, his conscience did not allow him to serve in the army. He was convicted of draft evasion
and sentenced to two years and six months’ imprisonment.
Relying on Article 9 (freedom of thought, conscience and religion) of the European Convention on
Human Rights, he complains about his arrest and subsequent detention, prosecution and conviction
for conscientious objection, despite having requested to do alternative civilian service.
Violation of Article 9
Just satisfaction:
non-pecuniary damage: 9,000 euros (EUR)
costs and expenses: EUR 1,500
https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng#{%22languageisocode%22:[%22ENG%22],%22respondent%22:[%22ARM%22],%22documentcollectionid2%22:[%22GRANDCHAMBER%22,%22CHAMBER%22],%22itemid%22:[%22001-211259%22]}