Interim Resolution CM/ResDH(2010)224
Execution of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights
concerning the excessive length of judicial proceedings in Italy:
- 2183 cases against Italy concerning the excessive length of judicial proceedings
(follow up to Interim Resolutions DH(97)336, DH(99)436, DH(99)437, ResDH(2000)135 ; ResDH(2005)114; CM/ResDH(2007)2,CM/ResDH(2009)42:
- including 118 cases concerning the length of proceedings concerning civil rights and obligations before administrative courts
(See Appendix for the list of cases)
- and including 2065 cases concerning the length of judicial proceedings
(See Appendix for the list of cases)
and
- 24 cases concerning bankruptcy proceedings (Articles 1 of Protocol No.1 and 6, paragraph 1) (listed in Appendix I)
(Adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 2 December 2010
at the 1100th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies)
The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 46, paragraph 2, of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, as amended by Protocol No. 11 (hereinafter “the Convention”),
Given the considerable number of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (hereinafter “the Court”) and decisions of the Committee of Ministers ("the Committee") since the early 1980s finding structural problems underlying the excessive length of civil, criminal and administrative proceedings in Italy;
Recalling the major reforms undertaken in respect of civil and criminal proceedings as well as proceedings before the Court of Audit which led the Committee to close its examination of these aspects of the problem in the 1990s (see Resolutions ResDH(92)26, ResDH(95)82 and ResDH(94)26);
Recalling that given the subsequent, continued influx of new findings of violations the Committee resumed its examination of these proceedings;
Recalling that the Committee decided to keep these cases on its agenda until such time as effective reforms were implemented and the reversal of the national tendency in the context of length of proceedings was definitely confirmed (Interim Resolution ResDH(2000)135);
Bearing in mind that the Committee, in its last Interim Resolution CM/ResDH(2009)42, called upon the authorities to envisage and adopt urgently ad hoc measures to reduce the civil and criminal backlog; to provide the resources needed to guarantee the implementation of all the reforms; and to pursue the consideration of any other measure to improve the efficiency of justice, inviting them to draw up a timetable for anticipated medium-term results with a view to assessing them as the reforms proceed, and to adopt a method for analysing these results in order to make any necessary adjustments, if need be;
Recalling that, as regards administrative procedures, the Committee encouraged the Italian authorities to continue with their undertakings aimed at measuring precisely the backlog, adopting any measures envisaged further to reduce it and assessing the impact on the backlog of any measure taken;
Bearing in mind that, as regards bankruptcy proceedings, in its latest Interim Resolution CM/ResDH(2009)42, the Committee called upon the Italian authorities to assess the effects of the Bankruptcy Proceedings Reform as it proceeds with a view to adopting any further measures necessary to ensure its effectiveness, and to take also any measures necessary to expedite pending proceedings to which the reform does not apply;
Recalling that in Interim Resolution CM/ResDH(2009)42, the Committee also strongly encouraged the authorities to consider amending Act No. 89/2001[1] with a view to setting up a financial system, resolving the problems of delay in the payment of compensation awarded, to simplify the procedure and to extend the scope of the remedy to include injunctions to expedite proceedings; recalling further that more than 500 applications exclusively concerning the issue of delay in payment of compensation have been communicated by the Court to the Italian government (see the Simaldone judgment, application No. 22644/03);
Reiterating that excessive delays in the administration of justice constitute a serious danger for the respect of the rule of law, resulting in a denial of rights enshrined in the Convention;
Noting with concern that, since the last Interim resolution adopted in March 2009, on the several outstanding issues there has not been a constant and sufficient flow of information, thus not allowing the Committee to make an effective assessment;
Noting however that, among the few statistic provided referring to the year 2008, a significant decrease in the average length of proceedings before first- and second-instance civil courts, as well as before justices of the peace is reported while, on the contrary, before criminal courts a slight increase is registered; as regards administrative proceedings, an increase in the number of pending cases is registered in 2008;
Regretting that statistics concerning year 2009 were submitted shortly before the meeting, thus making it impossible for the Committee of Ministers to assess them at the present meeting;
Underlying the importance of building an effective medium- and long-term strategy to find a solution to this structural problem, which requires a strong political commitment;
URGES the Italian authorities at the highest level strongly to hold to their political commitment to resolving the problem of the excessive length of judicial proceedings and to take all necessary technical and budgetary measures accordingly;
FIRMLY INVITES the Italian authorities to undertake interdisciplinary action, involving the main judicial actors, co-ordinated at the highest political level, with a view to drawing up urgently an effective strategy and to present it to the Committee, together with up-to-date data and statistics.
Appendix I
- 24 cases concerning bankruptcy proceedings (Articles 1 of Protocol No. 1 and 6§1)
Interim Resolutions CM/ResDH(2007)27 and CM/ResDH(2007)2
CM/Inf/DH(2008)42
32190/96Luordo, judgment of 17/07/03, final on 17/10/03
47778/99Bassani, judgment of 11/12/03, final on 11/03/04
14448/03Bertolini, judgment of 18/12/2007, final on 07/07/2008
56298/00Bottaro, judgment of 17/07/03, final on 17/10/03
13697/04Carbe and others, judgment of 23/06/2009, final on 23/09/2009
30408/03Cavalleri, judgment of 26/05/2009, final on 26/08/2009
24824/03Colombi, judgment of 26/05/2009, final on 26/08/2009
1595/02De Blasi, judgment of 05/10/2006, final on 12/02/2007
10347/02Di Ieso, judgment of 03/07/2007, final on 03/10/2007
37360/04Diurno, judgment of 23/06/2009, final on 23/09/2009
77986/01Forte, judgment of 10/11/2005, final on 10/02/2006
10756/02Gallucci, judgment of 12/06/2007, final on 12/11/2007
10481/02Gasser, judgment of 21/09/2006, final on 12/02/2007
55984/00Goffi, judgment of 24/03/2005, final on 06/07/2005
6480/03Mur, judgment of 26/05/2009, final on 26/08/2009
7503/02Neroni, judgment of 20/04/2004, final on 10/11/2004
39884/98Parisi and 3 others, judgment of 05/02/04, final on 05/05/04
44521/98Peroni, judgment of 06/11/03, final on 06/02/04
34562/04Roccaro, judgment of 23/06/2009, final on 23/09/2009
52985/99S.C., V.P., F.C. and E.C., judgment of 6/11/03, final on 6/02/04
981/04Shaw, judgment of 10/03/2009, final on 10/06/2009
13606/04Vicari Maria, judgment of 26/05/2009, final on 26/08/2009
29070/04Vinci Mortillaro, judgment of 23/06/2009, final on 23/09/2009
7842/02Viola and others, judgment of 08/01/2008, final on 08/04/2008
[1] Award of just satisfaction in the event of a breach of the requirement to dispose of proceedings within a reasonable time, referred to as the Pinto Law.
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