If, as a party to a court proceeding, you consider that the competent court has not ruled on your right within a reasonable time, you are entitled to legal protection and compensation.
If you are a party to a court proceeding and you consider that the competent court has not ruled within a reasonable time on your right, obligation, suspicion or charge of a criminal offense, you are entitled to legal protection.
According to established practice, the court proceedings should be finalized within three years of their initiation.
If your case is not resolved within a reasonable time, you have the opportunity to file:
- a request for the protection of the right to a trial within a reasonable time before the court in which the proceedings are pending
- a request for payment of adequate compensation for the violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time.
Request for the protection of the right to a trial within a reasonable time
A request for the protection of the right to a trial within a reasonable time is filed to the court in which the proceedings are pending and is decided by the president of that court within 60 days from the day your request was received.
When deciding on the request, the president of the court will take into account nature of the case, factual and legal complexity of the case, conduct of the parties and activities of the court.
If the president of the court determines that your request is founded, he will set a time-limit for regularly not more than six months in which the judge must decide on your case, unless the circumstances of the case require a longer time-limit.
If the president of the court determines that your request is unfounded and rejects your request, you may file an appeal within eight days from the day you received the decision.
You also have the right to file an appeal if the court president didn't decide within 60 days of receiving your request.
Your appeal will be decided by the president of the immediate higher court, and if your request relates to an ongoing case before the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia, the panel of three judges of that court will decide on your appeal.
The president of the immediate higher court or the panel may dismiss the appeal as unfounded and confirm the first instance decision or modify the decision.
Request for the payment of compensation for the violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time
If your case has not been resolved within the time-limit set by the court president , within the next six months you can file a request to the immediate higher court to claim an adequate compensation for the violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time.
If the request relates to a case pending before the High Commercial Court of the Republic of Croatia, the High Administrative Court of the Republic of Croatia or the High Misdemeanor Court of the Republic of Croatia, the request is decided by the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia. If the request relates to a case pending before the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia, a panel of three judges of that court will decide on the request.
The immediate higher court is obliged to rule on the request within six months.
The immediate higher court or a panel of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia will set a new time-limit by which the court before which the case is pending must resolve your case and the amount of the adequate compensation, not more than 4.645,30 EUR / 35,000 HRK.
An appeal against the decision on the request for payment of adequate compensation for violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time may be filed to the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia within eight days.
The appeal is decided by a panel of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia.
The decision awarding adequate compensation for violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time shall be delivered, immediately after it becomes final, to the president of the court before which the right to a trial within a reasonable time was violated, the President of the Supreme Court and the Ministry of Justice and Administration.
The adequate compensation is paid from the state budget. The request for payment of compensation is submitted to the Ministry of Justice and Administration.
Payment of the awarded compensation
Upon receiving the decision ordering payment of an adequate compensation for violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time, a request for payment of the awarded compensation for violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time should be filed to the Ministry of Justice and Administration.
The request for the payment of the awarded compensation is filed to the Ministry of Justice and Administration, the General Secretariat, Administrative office, in person or bypost service, at Ulica grada Vukovara 49, 10000 Zagreb.
If you are a natural person, your request should include:
- personal information (name, surname)
- PIN (Personal Identification Number)
- address and contact telephone or email address
- IBAN account to which the compensation should be paid.
If the payment is to be made to the account of an attorney-in-fact, the request for payment of the awarded compensation should be accompanied by the power of attorney.
If you are a legal person, your request should include:
- the correct name of the legal person
- contact telephone, fax or e-mail
- bank account number, ie IBAN and bank name
- PIN (Personal Identification Number) i
- MB (registration number).
If the payment is to be made to the account of an attorney-in-fact, the request for payment of the awarded compensation should be accompanied by the power of attorney.
If, however, you have filed a request for payment of adequate compensation for the violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time to the court that is not competent, for example to commercial Court, that court will forward the request directly to the immediate higher court - the High Commercial Court of the Republic of Croatia.
In this case, the High Commercial Court of the Republic of Croatia, which issues a decision ordering payment of an adequate compensation for the violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time, will provide the execution clause.
Information regarding requests for payment of compensation for violation of the right to a trial within a reasonable time are available on Tuesdays from 8.30 am to 11.30 am, telephone number 01 / 3714-661.