FIRST SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 30122/04
by Jovan RAPAIĆ
against Croatia
The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting on 3 May 2007 as a Chamber composed of:
MrC.L. Rozakis, President,
MrL. Loucaides,
MrsN. Vajić,
MrA. Kovler,
MrD. Spielmann,
MrS.E. Jebens,
MrG. Malinverni, judges,
and Mr S. Nielsen, Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above application lodged on 6 August 2004,
Having regard to the decision to apply Article 29 § 3 of the Convention and examine the admissibility and merits of the case together.
Having regard to the formal declarations accepting a friendly settlement of the case.
Having deliberated, decides as follows:
THE FACTS
The applicant, Mr Jovan Rapaić, is a Croatian national who was born in 1928 and lives in Korenica. He was represented before the Court by Mrs J. Malešević, a lawyer practising in Zagreb. The Croatian Government were represented by their Agent, Mrs Š. Stažnik.
The facts of the case, as submitted by the parties, may be summarised as follows.
The applicant is the owner of a house in Korenica where he had lived until August 1995 when he left for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
On 26 July 1996 the Commission for Temporary Takeover and Use of Certain Property of the Municipality of Korenica (Komisija za privremeno preuzimanje i korištenje određene imovine Općine Korenica – “the Takeover Commission”) temporarily accommodated a certain S.N. in the applicant’s house.
Following his return to Croatia, on 24 August 1998 the applicant instituted administrative proceedings before the Housing Commission of the Municipality of Plitvička Jezera (“the Housing Commission”) seeking repossession of his property. On 2 March 1999 the Housing Commission granted the request, set aside the Takeover Commission’s decision of 26 July 1996, and ordered S.N. to vacate the applicant’s house.
On 20 July 1999 the Housing Commission issued a warrant to S.N. to vacate the house within 15 days and indicated that otherwise it would bring a civil action against her in the competent municipal court.
Since S.N. failed to comply with the above-mentioned warrant, the Housing Commission brought a civil action for her eviction in the Korenica Municipal Court (Općinski sud u Korenici).
On 2 April 2001 the Municipal Court ruled for the plaintiff and ordered S.N. to vacate the applicant’s house. Since S.N. did not do so, on 12 June 2001 the Housing Commission applied for enforcement of the above judgment to the same court.
On 18 June 2001 the court issued a writ of execution (rješenje o ovrsi). The writ was carried out on 24 February 2005 and the applicant repossessed his house.
COMPLAINTS
1. The applicant complained under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 thereto about the length of the proceedings.
2. He also complained under Article 13 of the Convention, taken in conjunction with Article 6 § 1 thereof, about the lack of an effective remedy in respect of the length of the proceedings.
THE LAW
By letter of 9 March 2007 the applicant informed the Court that he accepted a proposal for a friendly settlement and waived any further claims against Croatia in respect of the facts of the present application.
On 13 March 2007 the Government informed the Court that the parties had reached a settlement whereby the Government would pay the applicant 30,000 euros in full and final settlement of the case, costs and expenses included.
The Court takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and its Protocols (Article 37 § 1 in fine of the Convention). Accordingly, Article 29 § 3 of the Convention should no longer apply to the case and it should be struck out of the list.
For these reasons, the Court unanimously
Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases.
Søren NielsenChristos Rozakis
RegistrarPresident
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy