Information Note on the Court’s case-law No.
October 1993
Stamoulakatos v. Greece (no. 1) (preliminary objections) - 12806/87
Judgment 26.10.1993
Article 35
Article 35-3
Ratione temporis
Criminal trial in accused's absence: preliminary objection allowed
[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.]
THE GOVERNMENT'S PRELIMINARY OBJECTIONS (Court's lack of jurisdiction ratione temporis and failure to exhaust domestic remedies)
The events giving rise to proceedings against the applicant and the judgments whereby he was convicted were covered by time limitation in Greece's declaration in respect of Article 25 of the Convention.
The applicant's appeals and applications against those judgments had been lodged after the date on which Greece's recognition of the right of individual petition had taken effect but were closely bound up with the proceedings that had led to his conviction - divorcing them from the events that had given rise to them would, in the instant case, be tantamount to rendering Greece's declaration nugatory.
Conclusion: first objection upheld (unanimously).
Unnecessary to examine the Government's other arguments.
© Council of Europe/European Court of Human Rights
This summary by the Registry does not bind the Court.
Click here for the Case-Law Information Notes
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy