CASE OF SLUKVINA v. UKRAINE
Violation of Art 6-1;Violation of P1-1;Not necessary to examine Art 13;Pecuniary damage - claim dismissed;Non-pecuniary damage - award
Peer Lorenzen
4. The applicant was born in 1936 and resides in the town of Novogrodivka, Donetsk region, Ukraine. 5. The applicant instituted proceedings in the Novogrodivskyy Town Court of Donetsk Region against the Novogrodivska Mining Company No. 1/3 (Шахта 1/3 «Новогродівська») - a State-owned enterprise - to recover salary arrears and other payments due to her late husband. 6. On 28 May 2001 the Novogrodivskyy Town Court found in favour of the applicant (Рішення Новогродівського міського суду Донецької області) and awarded her 23,741.84 Ukrainian hryvnias (“UAH”). The judgment was sent for enforcement to the Novogrodivskyy Town Bailiffs' Service (Відділ Державної виконавчої служби Новогродівського міського управління юстиції). 7. Subsequently, the applicant instituted proceedings in the Novogrodivskyy Town Court of the Donetsk Region against the Novogrodivskyy Town Bailiffs' Service for failure to enforce the judgment in her favour. On 20 December 2001 the Town Court rejected the applicant's claim, finding no fault had been committed by the Bailiffs' Service. The court stated that the Bailiffs' Service had acted properly in enforcing the judgment of 28 May 2001. However, by a number of decisions of the Commercial Court of the Donetsk Region, the Bailiffs' Service had been prohibited from selling the property of the Mining Company, due to the bankruptcy proceedings which had been initiated against the company. On 14 March 2002 the Supreme Court of Ukraine rejected the applicant's appeal in cassation. 8. In August 2002, the applicant instituted another set of proceedings in the Novogrodivskyy Town Court of the Donetsk Region against the Novogrodivskyy Town Bailiffs' Service for failure to enforce the judgment in her favour. On 10 October 2002 the Town Court rejected the applicant's claim, for the same reasons as before. On 16 December 2002 the Donetsk Regional Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the first instance court of 10 October 2002. On 22 October 2003 the Supreme Court of Ukraine rejected the applicant's appeal in cassation. 9. In February 2003 the Novogrodivska Mining Company was reorganised and became a structural subdivision of the Selidovugol Mining Company. As the latter thereby became the debtor, in February 2004 the enforcement proceedings were transferred to the Selidivskyy Town Bailiffs' Service (Відділ Державної виконавчої служби Селидівського міського управління юстиції). 10. The judgment in the applicant's favour was enforced by instalments, the last amount being paid on 31 August 2004. 11. The applicant instituted proceedings in the Selidivskyy Town Court of the Donetsk region against the Selidivskyy Town Bailiffs' Service claiming compensation for material and moral damage caused to her by the delay in the enforcement of the judgment in her favour. On 24 November 2004 the court found against the applicant. On 21 July 2005 the Donetsk Regional Court of Appeal upheld this judgment. The applicant appealed in cassation and the proceedings are still pending. 12. The relevant domestic law is summarised in the judgment of Sokur v. Ukraine (no. 29439/02, § 17-22, 26 April 2005).