THIRD SECTION
CASE OF RODINA AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA
(Applications nos. 81202/17 and 9 others –
see appended list)
JUDGMENT
STRASBOURG
10 November 2022
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.
In the case of Rodina and Others v. Russia,
The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:
Darian Pavli, President,
Andreas Zünd,
Frédéric Krenc, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 20 October 2022,
Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:
PROCEDURE
1. The case originated in applications against Russia lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table.
2. The Russian Government (“the Government”) were given notice of the applications.
THE FACTS
3. The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table.
4. The applicants complained of the lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of the prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.
THE LAW
JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS5. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.
ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 6 § 1 of the Convention6. The applicants complained of the lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of the prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings. They relied, expressly or in substance, on Article 6 § 1 of the Convention, which reads as follows:
Article 6 § 1
“In the determination of ... any criminal charge against him, everyone is entitled to a fair ... hearing ... by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law.”
7. The relevant principles of the Court’s case-law concerning the requirement of impartiality under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention can be found in the leading case of Karelin v. Russia (no. 926/08, §§ 51-57, 20 September 2016, with further references). In that case the Court assessed the national rules of administrative procedure and concluded that the statutory requirement allowing for the national judicial authorities to consider an administrative offence case which falls within the ambit of Article 6 of the Convention under its criminal limb, in the absence of a prosecuting authority, was incompatible with the principle of objective impartiality set out in Article 6 of the Convention.
8. Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on the admissibility and merits of the complaints in the present case.
9. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 6 § 1 of the Convention.
APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION10. Article 41 of the Convention provides:
“If the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the Protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.”
11. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case‑law (see, in particular, Kuratov and Others v. Russia [Committee], nos. 24377/15 and 2 others, 22 October 2019), the Court considers it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table.
12. The Court further considers it appropriate that the default interest rate should be based on the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank, to which should be added three percentage points.
FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,
Decides to join the applications;Declares the applications admissible;Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 6 § 1 of the Convention concerning the lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of the prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings; Holds(a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;
(b) that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.
Done in English, and notified in writing on 10 November 2022, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.
Viktoriya Maradudina Darian Pavli
Acting Deputy Registrar President
APPENDIX
List of applications raising complaints under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention
(lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of the prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings)
No.
Application no.
Date of introduction
Applicant’s name
Year of birth
Representative’s name and location
Penalty
Date of final domestic decision
Name of court
Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per applicant
(in euros)[1]
81202/17
21/11/2017
Yuliya Valeryevna RODINA
1973
fine of RUB 10,000
02/11/2017, Tsentralnyy District Court of Komsomolsk-on-Amur
1,000
82114/17
27/11/2017
Igor Sergeyevich LABZENEV
1965
Vologin Aleksey Borisovich
Volsk
fine of RUB 30,000;
suspension of driving licence for 1 year and 6 months
04/08/2017, Volskiy District Court of Saratov Region
1,000
3623/18
25/12/2017
Yevgeniy Vladimirovich SOSNIN
1982
Kulakov Yevgeniy Valeryevich
Arkhangelsk
suspension of driving licence for 1 year and 4 months
19/12/2017, Arkhangelsk Regional Court
1,000
4810/18
19/01/2018
Valeriy Kamoyevich MELKUMYAN
1996
Memorial Human Rights Centre
Moscow
fine of RUB 15,000
20/07/2017, Moscow City Court
1,000
5486/18
18/01/2018
Sergey Yuryevich MAZIN
1965
Vologin Aleksey Borisovich
Volsk
fine of RUB 10,000
24/10/2017, Volskiy District Court of the Saratov Region
1,000
5614/18
17/01/2018
Fedor Sergeyevich ONISHCHUK
1981
suspension of driving licence for 1 year
04/08/2017, Cheryomushkinskiy District Court of Moscow
1,000
8417/18
04/01/2018
Ivan Yuryevich MEZENTSEV
1985
Kulakov Yevgeniy Valeryevich
Arkhangelsk
fine of RUB 5,000
14/12/2017, Solombalskiy District Court of the Arkhangelsk Region
1,000
9650/18
22/01/2018
Andrey Sergeyevich BESPALOV
1988
Kulakov Yevgeniy Valeryevich
Arkhangelsk
fine of RUB 30,000
22/11/2017, Sombalskiy District Court of the Arkhangelsk Region
1,000
12571/18
10/02/2018
Yevgeniy Vasilyevich SUMAROKOV
1987
Kulakov Yevgeniy Valeryevich
Arkhangelsk
suspension of driving licence for 4 months
06/02/2018, Lomonosovskiy District Court of Arkhangelsk
1,000
15475/18
16/03/2018
Aleksey Vasilyevich OSADCHIY
1992
Kuzmin Konstantin Aleksandrovich
Kirovskiy
7 days’ administrative arrest
11/10/2017, Primorye Regional Court
1,000
[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.