Communicated on 13 June 2017
SECOND SECTION
Application no. 4529/06
Nevzer ZORLU and others
against Turkey
lodged on 20 December 2005
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
The application concerns compensation proceedings brought by the applicants against private contractors in respect of the losses they suffered when their buildings collapsed in the earthquake of 17 August 1999.
On 19 July 2001 the Yalova Civil Court rejected the applicants’ actions ruling that the claims for damages against the contractors of the buildings were time-barred. The 13th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation upheld the judgments rendered in respect of applicants, on 25 May, 14 June and 21 June 2004 respectively, and on 13 September 2005 in the case of the applicant, Nevzer Zorlu. All applicants except for three (Can Erdoğan, Süleyman Erdoğan and Nevzer Zorlu) sought before the First Presidency of the Court of Cassation the harmonisation of the case-law concerning the application of the statute of limitations arguing that as opposed to the 13th Civil Chamber, the 4th Civil Chamber quashed judgments where claims had been rejected for being time-barred. On 23 June 2005, the First Presidency of the Court of Cassation decided to reject their request, a decision which was not subject to appeal.
The applicants complain that the disparities between the case-law of the different chambers of the Court of Cassation and the rejection of their request for harmonisation without adequate reasoning undermined the principle of legal certainty and therefore violated their right to have a fair hearing under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention. The applicants further maintain that the rejection of their claims for damages solely on the basis of the statute of limitations violated their right to peaceful enjoyment of possessions under Article 1 of Protocol No. 1.
QUESTIONS tO THE PARTIES
1. Did the alleged divergence between the case-law of the 13th and 4th Civil Chambers of the Court of Cassation and the First Presidency of the Court of Cassation’s refusal of the applicants’ request for the harmonisation of the case-law violate the applicants’ right to have a fair trial under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention (see Hayati Çelebi and Others v. Turkey, no. 582/05, 9 February 2016)?
2. In the affirmative, did the rejection of the applicants’ claims for being time-barred violate their rights under Article 1 of Protocol No. 1? In particular, were the applicants afforded judicial procedures that offer the necessary procedural guarantees in the adjudication of their claims (see Gereksar and Others v. Turkey, nos. 34764/05 and 3 others, § 51, 1 February 2011)?
APPENDIX
Nevzer ZORLU Türkan AKSİS Fahriye BARAN Ayşe Alanur ÇİMENDAĞ Can ERDOĞAN Müjgan ERDOĞAN Süleyman ERDOĞAN Füsun GİZ Mustafa Reha KÜPÇÜOĞLUGülden OKANSelçuk TEKBAŞMehmet Semih YAZGANAziz Cüneyt YÜKSEL
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy