France - Council of State, 7 November 2012, n° 350355

Facts:

The Applicant asked the Council of State to quash the order made by one of the CNDA Section Presidents who had rejected his application to quash the OFPRA’s refusal decision of 28 December 2009.

Decision & reasoning:

The Court did not consider that the provisions of CESEDA Article L.733 (2), which allowed CNDA Section Presidents to make orders in cases which did not justify a collegiate decision, were incompatible with the stipulations of the Geneva Convention, Articles 6 and 13 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, or domestic legislation and administrative procedures. Consequently, the Court rejected the submission that, in the absence of prior notification of the use of this procedure, the disputed order was made following an irregular procedure.

In this particular case the Court considered that the Applicant, in his appeal, had not added anything to his previous statements that effectively challenged the OFPRA’s decision nor proved the facts alleged. Thus, the Court concluded that the issuer of the order, without any error of law, carried out a final assessment of the documents included in the file and found that it contained no evidence seriously capable of calling into question the grounds for the OFPRA’s decision to refuse. 

Outcome:

Appeal rejected

Observations/comments:

The option for the CNDA to determine certain cases without a collegiate decision (i.e. before a single judge and by order without hearing the Applicant) was provided for in Articles L. 733(2) and R 733(16) of the CESEDA.