Information Note on the Court’s case-law No.
February 1992
Lestini v. Italy - 12859/87
Judgment 26.2.1992
Article 6
Article 6-1
Reasonable time
Length of civil proceedings: violation
[This summary is extracted from the Court’s official reports (Series A or Reports of Judgments and Decisions). Its formatting and structure may therefore differ from the Case-Law Information Note summaries. It also covers the following judgments of 26 February 1992 against Italy: Nibbio (12854/87), Borgese (12870/87), Biondi (12871/87) and Monaco (12923/87).]
I.ARTICLE 6 § 1 OF THE CONVENTION ("reasonable time")
A.Period to be taken into consideration
Starting-point (in each case): institution of proceedings in the magistrate's court.
End: date on which District Court's judgment became final (Borgese, Monaco and Lestini) or proceedings still pending (Nibbio and Biondi).
Total duration: from a little less than five years (Borgese) to over nine (Nibbio).
B.Applicable criteria
Reasonableness of the length of proceedings: to be assessed with reference to the criteria laid down in the Court's case-law and in the light of the circumstances of the case, which in the cases under review called for an overall assessment.
Examination in each case of various stages of the proceedings.
Conclusion: violation (five votes to four in the Borgese case, six votes to three in Lestini and unanimously in the other three cases).
II.ARTICLE 50 OF THE CONVENTION
Pecuniary damage: no causal connection with the violation found.
Non-pecuniary damage: sum awarded.
Costs and expenses before the Convention organs: reimbursed in part.
Interest: not appropriate to require payment thereof in the cases before the Court.
Conclusion: respondent State to pay to the applicants, within three months, specified sums (unanimously).
© Council of Europe/European Court of Human Rights
This summary by the Registry does not bind the Court.
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