ECHR pronounces judgment in case of “Dacia SRL v. Moldova”

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) today, March 18, announced the judgment in the case of “Dacia SRL v. Moldova”, finding a number of violations of the European Convention on Human Rights. If the judgment becomes final, the Moldova Government will be forced to pay the plaintiff more than two million euros for damages. The plaintiff, Dacia SRL, has complained about the annulment of the privatization of its hotel without compelling reasons and the unfairness of the ensuing legal proceedings. In 1997, the Dacia hotel, then owned by the State, was auctioned. Six years later, the Prosecutor General’s Office brought court proceedings in the interest of the State, seeking to annul the privatization of the hotel and requesting that Dacia SRL be designated as defendant in the case. In June 2003 the Economic Court of Moldova ultimately accepted the Prosecutor General’s request and annulled the privatization on the ground that it had been unlawful. The owner was ordered to return the hotel to the State Chancellery in exchange for the initial price paid for the hotel. ECHR held that there had been an interference with Dacia SRL’s property rights. The Court observed that the applicant company had lost ownership of its hotel and the underlying land, as well as various related investments, and had received in return only the initial price paid for the hotel. The plaintiff company claimed about 2.26 million euros in respect of pecuniary damage, 50,000 euros in respect of non-pecuniary damage and other 3,255 euros for costs and expenses. Yet the European Court has left the issue of the claim unsettled for now; it will be the subject of a separate judgment. Under Article 43 of the European Convention, within three months from the date of a Chamber judgment, any party to the case may, in exceptional cases, request that the case be referred to the 17-member Grand Chamber of the Court. In that event, a panel of five judges considers whether the case raises a serious question affecting the interpretation or application of the Convention or its protocols, or a serious issue of general importance, in which case the Grand Chamber will deliver a final judgment.