Janowiec and Others v. Russia (GC) - 55508/07 29520/09 - Legal Summary [2013] ECHR 1160 (21 October 2013)

Janowiec and Others v. Russia (GC) - 55508/07 29520/09 - Legal Summary [2013] ECHR 1160 (21 October 2013)

The Court lacked temporal jurisdiction under Article 2 because the deaths occurred 58 years before the Convention entered into force for Russia and no genuine connection existed. There was no violation of Article 3 as the applicants’ suffering did not reach the required threshold after 1998. Russia failed to comply with Article 38 by not providing the requested document, as national security concerns were not properly balanced or independently reviewed.

Citation
[2013] ECHR 1160
Parties
Applicants: Janowiec and Others; Respondent: Russia
Jurisdiction
European Union
Judgment Date
21 October 2013
Procedural Posture
Application to the European Court of Human Rights (grand Chamber) / Final Judgment
Outcome
preliminary objection upheld in part; no violation of Article 2; no violation of Article 3; violation of Article 38
Legal Topics
Right to Life, Procedural Obligations, Inhuman Treatment, State Responsibility, Temporal Jurisdiction, National Security and Secrecy
Human Rights Law International Law Right to Life Procedural Obligations Inhuman Treatment State Responsibility Temporal Jurisdiction National Security and Secrecy

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Parties

Janowiec and Others

Applicants

Russia

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Application to the European Court of Human Rights (grand Chamber) / Final Judgment

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Court had temporal jurisdiction to examine the procedural obligation under Article 2 regarding deaths occurring before the Convention entered into force for Russia
  2. 2 Whether Russia violated Article 3 by causing inhuman treatment to the applicants through its handling of information requests
  3. 3 Whether Russia failed to comply with Article 38 by refusing to provide the Court with a copy of the decision to discontinue the investigation

Ratio Decidendi

The Court lacked temporal jurisdiction under Article 2 because the deaths occurred 58 years before the Convention entered into force for Russia and no genuine connection existed. There was no violation of Article 3 as the applicants’ suffering did not reach the required threshold after 1998. Russia failed to comply with Article 38 by not providing the requested document, as national security concerns were not properly balanced or independently reviewed.

Court Disposition

preliminary objection upheld in part; no violation of Article 2; no violation of Article 3; violation of Article 38

Orders

  • No just satisfaction awarded; claims for damages dismissed