Features of calculation of reasonable time of the trial in civil cases in the context of the practice of the European court of human rights

Abstract

Problem setting. European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) guarantees right to a fair trial within a reasonable time for everyone (par. 1 art. 6 ECHR). Reasonable time of the trial is an element of the right to a fair trial. One of the main directions for development of civil procedure in Ukraine is the implementation of international standards of fair trial, in particular standards of reasonable time of the trial. Recent research and publications analyses. Foreign and Ukrainian scientists such as Komarov V. V., Neshataeva T. M., Sakara N. U. and others in their works paid attention to different aspects of problems connected with the right to a fair trial within a reasonable time, but a comprehensive study devoted to a features of calculation of reasonable time of the trial taking into account the practice of the ECHR on this issue wasn’t conducted. Paper objective. Main objective of the article is to study decisions of the ECHR concerning the interpretation of Par. 1, Art. 6 ECHR and analyze features of calculation of reasonable time of the trial to make recommendations on implementation of such national level. Paper main body. As a rule, according to a practice of ECHR reasonable time of civil proceedings begins on the date on which the case is referred to a judicial authority. Thus ECHR can take as the starting point the date of a preliminary application to an administrative authority, especially when this is a prerequisite for commencement of proceedings. The end of reasonable time of the trial connected with the moment when the court decision become final or its execution. Conclusions of the research. Calculation of reasonable time of the trial in civil cases in circumstances when an application to the court was preceded by a seeking for protection from the authorities and public servants of executive power has features. In such situations a calculation of reasonable time of the trial doesn’t begin from the moment of seeking for protection from any authority or public servant of executive power, provided by art. 17 of Civil Code of Ukraine. The calculation begins from this moment only if such authority provides guarantee of a “court” according to the practice of ECHR or this is a prerequisite for commencement of proceedings.