4.  The applicant was born in 1935 and lives in Helsinki.
Background 5.  In November 1994 400,000 US dollars were transferred from the applicant’s Swiss bank account to a Finnish bank account. According to the applicant, the intention was that the money should go into her Finnish bank account. It appears that her husband, B, organised the operation but transferred the money allegedly by mistake to his own account. Soon after, that same amount was transferred from B’s account to an account which belonged to a company, C. The applicant and B had a right to use that account.
Distraint order and subsequent administrative proceedings 6.  The bailiff noticed that the money had passed through B’s account and, on 19 April 1995, seized the amount from C’s account as there were recovery proceedings against B relating to unpaid taxes. 7.  On 9 May 1995 the applicant appealed against the distraint order to the County Administrative Board (lääninhallitus, länsstyrelsen) of Uusimaa, arguing that the assets belonged to her and could not, thus, be seized for the payment of B’s personal debts. On 12 May 1995 the County Administrative Board stayed the execution of the order. 8.  On 31 January 1996 the County Administrative Board instructed the applicant, under chapter 4, section 10 of the Execution Act (ulosottolaki, utsökningslagen) as in force at the relevant time, to take proceedings against B, the bank and the Tax Office of Uusimaa (verovirasto, skatteverket) within three months from the service of the decision and to inform the bailiff of the institution of proceedings. A failure to do so would lead to the payment of the debts to the creditors, who had applied for enforcement. The applicant did not appeal.
Ownership proceedings 9.  On 12 April 1996 the applicant instituted proceedings against the bank (which had allowed the assets in C’s account to be seized), the Tax Office (at the request of which the distraint order was issued) and B (whom the bailiff assumed to be the owner of the assets), requesting that the District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) of Helsinki confirm that she was the owner of the assets. 10.  It appears that the District Court invited the bank’s and the Tax Office’s responses to the summons during the first quarter of the year 1997. From March 1997 they made several requests, which the District Court granted, for an extension of the time allowed for their submissions. They filed their responses on 19 and 22 May 1997 respectively, urging the court to invite the applicant to supplement the summons. 11.  Over a year later, on 18 June 1998, the District Court invited the applicant to do so by 24 July 1998. Following her request for an extension of the time-limit, the court received her submission on 15 August 1998. 12.  In the preparatory hearing on 3 November 1998 the applicant among others requested an extension, which was granted. The principal hearing was held on 12 January 1999. 13.  On 26 January 1999 the District Court dismissed the applicant’s claims, finding that she had lent the moneys in issue to C and, thus, no longer had a right to dispose of the assets. She could only be considered to have an equivalent claim against C. 14.  On 23 February 1999 the applicant appealed. On 25 May 2000 the Helsinki Court of Appeal (hovioikeus, hovrätten) overturned the District Court’s judgment and revoked the distraint order, finding the applicant to be the rightful owner of the assets in question. The bailiff was ordered to return the seized amount to her when the judgment became final. 15.  On 20 July 2000 the bank and the Tax Office requested leave to appeal. On 16 May 2001 the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen) granted leave to appeal.
On 27 December 2001 it overturned the Court of Appeal’s judgment, upholding the District Court’s judgment. 16.  The applicant’s subsequent request that the case be re-opened was refused by the Supreme Court on 26 March 2003.