Case summaries
The Court found that there was a breach of Article 6(1) and (3)(d) of the Convention. The Court clarified that for a waiver of one’s rights to be compatible with the Convention, it must be shown that the applicant could reasonably have foreseen the consequences of his conduct. They further asserted that while the acceptance of pre-trial statements as evidence for a conviction is not a breach of Articles 6 (1) and 3(d), the absence of good reason for their use results in a breach of the Articles 6(1) and 3(d).
The Court decides that the Bosnian administrative authorities unlawfully disregarded the legal provisions pursuant to which the applicant was entitled to other, similar benefits, despite the fact that she specifically invoked those provisions in her appeal. The Sarajevo Cantonal Court thus did not give the applicant’s case a fair hearing. Moreover, the applicant’s case was not remedied by the Constitutional Court.
The Court decides that the proceedings were excessive and failed to meet the ‘reasonable time’ requirement; the Bosnian Government did not put forward any fact or argument capable of justifying the length of the proceedings.