Apostolidi and Others v. Turkey (dec.)

Information Note on the Court’s case-law No. 79

October 2005

Apostolidi and Others v. Turkey (dec.) - 45628/99

Decision 4.10.2005 [Section IV]

Article 14

Discrimination

Refusal of Turkish jurisdictions to recognise the property rights of Greek nationals who inherited real estate in Turkey due to non-respect by Greece of reciprocity: admissible

In 1990 the Istanbul District Court designated the applicants, who were all Greek nationals, as the heirs of a deceased Turkish national and granted them title to the estate. A third party subsequently claimed a relationship with the deceased by descent. In 1995 the Treasury applied for the annulment of the applicants’ title and the appointment of the third party as sole legatee. In 1997 the court granted the Treasury’s application, on the ground that under Greek law Turkish nationals could not acquire real estate within a large part of Greek territory without prior authorisation, which in practice was used as a means of restricting the acquisition of real estate by Turks. The court found that the condition of reciprocity laid down by Article 35 of the Turkish Land Ownership Code was not applied between Greece and Turkey and that, accordingly, the applicants, who were Greek nationals, could not claim inheritance of real estate located in Turkey. In 1998 the Court of Cassation quashed the decision at first instance, finding that the court below should have determined the nationality of the third party whose descent from the deceased had been established. In 2000 the District Court concluded that the person was a Turkish national and was the sole heir to the property in question. The Court of Cassation upheld the judgment on 3 July 2001.

Admissible under Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 taken separately and in conjunction with Article 14, in so far as the applicants complained of interference, on grounds of nationality, with their right to the enjoyment of their possessions.

Admissible under Article 6, in so far as the applicants complained of a breach of their right to a fair hearing because of the Turkish courts’ interpretation of the reciprocity condition.

Admissible under Article 6 (reasonable time).

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

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