FIRST SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 29606/15
JOŠTOVA REALITNÍ KANCELÁŘ - JORK, SPOL. S R.O.
against the Czech Republic
The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting on 15 November 2016 as a Committee composed of:
Ledi Bianku, President,
Aleš Pejchal,
Armen Harutyunyan, judges,
and Renata Degener, Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above application lodged on 12 June 2015,
Having deliberated, decides as follows:
FACTS AND PROCEDURE
The applicant, Joštova realitní kancelář - JORK, spol. s r.o., is a Czech limited liability company having its registered seat in Pardubice. It was represented before the Court by Mr M. Kojan, a lawyer practising in Prague.
The Czech Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mr Vít A. Schorm, from the Ministry of Justice.
The applicant, an owner of a tenement house in Pardubice in which one flat was rented under the State rent-control scheme, complained under Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 that the scheme violated its right to property which the State had failed to protect.
After the Government had been given notice of the application they informed the Court, by a letter dated on 6 September 2016, that they had reached a settlement with the applicant, and submitted a common declaration signed by the parties that reads as follows:
“The Government of the Czech Republic, represented before the European Court of Human Rights by their Agent Mr Vít Alexander Schorm (‘the Government’),
and
Joštova realitní kancelář - JORK, spol. s r. o., represented by its counsel Mr Michal Kojan (‘the Applicant’),
declare that:
1. they have reached a friendly settlement of case no. 29606/15 - Joštova realitní kancelář - JORK, spol. s r. o. v. the Czech Republic (‘the Application’) pending before the European Court of Human Rights (‘the Court’),
2. the Government hereby apologize for a violation of the applicant’s right to protection of property in the sense of Article 1 of Protocol no. 1 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (‘the Convention’) and for an interference with its proprietary rights in contradiction with Article 11 § 4 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms (‘the Charter’) that occurred in relation to flat no. 16, located in the ninth over-ground floor of the building no. 99 registered in the Pardubice cadastral area no. 717657, and situated in Pardubice, municipal district of Polabiny (‘flat no. 16’), caused by rent control without adequate legal basis between 2002-2006, similarly to the case of R&L, s. r. o., and Others v. the Czech Republic (nos. 37926/05 and others, principal judgment of 3 July 2014), as well as for a failure to redress the above violation of the Convention and the Charter in the course of domestic judicial proceedings which were conducted by the applicant before the Prague 1 District Court under File no. 42 C 73/2010, the Prague Municipal Court under File no. 12 Co 124/2014, the Constitutional Court under File no. II. ÚS 2764/14, the Prague 1 District Court under File no. 21 C 168/2005 and the Prague Municipal Court under File no. 53 Co 365/2015,
3. the Government will pay the Applicant, within three months from the publication of the decision by which the Court strikes the Application out of its list of cases pursuant to Article 39 § 3 of the Convention, a total amount of EUR 15,000 (fifteen thousand euros), converted into CZK (Czech korunas) at the rate applicable on the date of payment, to a bank account that the Applicant will specify to the Ministry of Justice without undue delay upon request,
4. the above-mentioned sum is to cover any and all pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage as well as costs and expenses, plus any tax that may be chargeable to the Applicant; the Government note in this context that according to Article 18 § 2(d) of Act no. 586/1992, on income tax, payment based on a friendly settlement of a case before the Court is not subject to corporate income tax,
5. if the above-mentioned amount is not paid within the said period of three months, then from the expiry date of that period until payment, a simple interest on the amount shall be paid at an annual rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank plus three percentage points,
6. the Applicant waives any further claims against the Czech Republic, except the claim referred to below under 7, based on the facts of the Application in relation to flat no. 16 and regards this friendly settlement as the final resolution of the Application; the Applicant declares that since the striking out of the Application it will not continue the proceedings in the case examined by the Prague 1 District Court under File no. 21 C 168/2005 and if these proceedings are pending before any domestic court on the basis of an ordinary or extraordinary remedy or constitutional appeal when the Court publishes its decision to strike the application out of its list of cases, the Applicant will submit to the competent court a motion seeking an immediate termination of the proceedings without issuing a decision on the merits,
7. the Government take note that a possible claim of the Applicant for compensation of damages in relation to the length of the proceedings initiated before the Prague 1 District Court under File no. 21 C 168/2005 is not affected by this declaration on friendly settlement,
8. the Applicant takes due note of the fact that in order to bind the Czech Republic the terms of this declaration are subject to further approval by the Government in accordance with applicable procedures; the Government shall notify the declaration to the Court after the approval has been given.
THE LAW
In the light of the above, the Court considers that the matter has been resolved within the meaning of Article 37 § 1 (b) of the Convention and that respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and its Protocols does not require it to continue the examination of the application under Article 37 § 1 in fine.
Accordingly, the case should be struck out of the list.
For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,
Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases.
Done in English and notified in writing on 8 December 2016.
Renata DegenerLedi Bianku
Deputy Registrar President
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy