| Applicant name | e.t. |
| Applicant type | |
| Number of applicants | |
| Country | MOLDOVA |
| Application no. | 25373/16 |
| Date | 12/11/2024 |
| Judges | Arnfinn Bårdsen, President, Jovan Ilievski, Saadet Yüksel, Lorraine Schembri Orland, Frédéric Krenc, Diana Sârcu, Gediminas Sagatys |
| Institution | Court |
| Type | Judgment |
| Outcome Art. 8 | Violation |
| Reason | Disproportionate |
| Type of privacy | Private life; relational privacy; procedural privacy |
| Keywords | Mentally incapable |
| Facts of the case | The case concerns the inability of the applicant, who had been declared totally incapacitated owing to her mental illness, to bring a court action aimed at restoring her legal capacity and the alleged discrimination against her on the basis of her intellectual disability. The applicant complained of a violation of Articles 6, 8 and 14 of the Convention. he applicant complained that she had been discriminated against as compared with other persons temporarily unable to understand their actions but whose legal capacity remained intact. She relied on Article 14 taken in conjunction with Article 8 of the Convention. |
| Analysis | In the present case the applicant found herself in a situation where she could no longer decide even in respect of the smallest matters or most intimate aspects of her life and was never heard in order to find out whether she had any wishes or preferences. By choosing to continue with a substitute decision-making regime, the Moldovan authorities allowed the most serious interference with the applicant’s rights by depriving her of all legal capacity and thus of any participation in decision-making processes concerning every aspect of her life. The Court finds that this failure on the part of the domestic authorities amounted to disproportionate measures stemming from the legislation itself. It is apparent that less drastic steps were possible, as exemplified by the new protection system introduced by the Republic of Moldova in 2017 and 2018 (see paragraph 20 above). |
| Other Article violation? | Article 6 |
| Damage awarded | Holds (a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicant, within three months from the date on which the judgment becomes final in accordance with Article 44 § 2 of the Convention, EUR 5,000 (five thousand euros), plus any tax that may be chargeable, in respect of non-pecuniary damage, to be converted into Moldovan lei at the rate applicable at the date of settlement; (b) that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amount at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points; |
| Documents | Judgment |