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UNIYA OOO AND BELCOURT TRADING COMPANY v. RUSSIA JUDGMENT
domestic proceedings in the capacity of a claimant, and its status has never
been questioned. The Court concludes that “Belcourt Trading Company
Ltd”, registered in the International Business Companies Registry of Belize
at no. 108605, can claim to pursue application no. 13290/03.
B. Withdrawal by the first applicant company of a part of its
complaints; a complaint by the second applicant company about
the same facts
267. In their letter of 25 September 2012 the applicant companies
informed the Court that, in view of the recent developments in the domestic
proceedings, and in particular in view of the judgment of 19 July 2012 by
the Moskovskiy District Court, upheld on appeal on 11 September 2012 by
the Kaliningrad Regional Court (see paragraphs 188-191 above), they
considered Belcourt a victim in respect of the loss of the second
consignment of alcohol. On 1 March 2013 the applicant companies
confirmed their position and asked the Court again to consider the second
applicant company an applicant in relation to the loss of the second
consignment of alcohol.
268. The Government objected. They observed that in the previous
proceedings the claimant was Uniya, not Belcourt. Consequently, Uniya
considered itself the lawful owner of the alcohol at issue and Belcourt had
no standing before this Court.
269. In the light of the applicant companies’ submissions of
25 September 2012 and 1 March 2013, the Court concludes that the first
applicant company (Uniya) wishes to withdraw its application insofar as it
concerns the loss of the second consignment of alcohol. In the
circumstances the Court decides that this part of application no. 13290/03
must be struck out pursuant to Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention.
270. As to the request by the second applicant company (Belcourt) to
take Uniya’s place in the proceedings related to the second consignment, the
Court notes that Belcourt’s complaint in this respect was brought before the
Court on 25 September 2012, i.e. almost immediately after Belcourt had lost
the case in the domestic proceedings which ended with the judgment of
11 September 2012 by the Kaliningrad Regional Court and which
concerned the compensation for the loss of the second consignment. The
complaint in respect of the second consignment was therefore brought by
Belcourt within the time-limit provided by Article 35 § 1 of the Convention
and after all ordinary domestic remedies had been exhausted. The
Government had ample opportunity to comment on all issues related to
seizure and destruction of the second consignment. In addition, the
Government commented on the second applicant company’s recent claims
to the second consignment, and on the domestic courts’ judgments in
respect of those claims.
UNIYA OOO AND BELCOURT TRADING COMPANY v. RUSSIA JUDGMENT
51
271. In the circumstances, and having regard to the original application
as submitted by Belcourt and the further developments at the national level
the Court considers that it is empowered to examine whether the destruction
of the second consignment breached Belcourt’s rights under Article 1 of
Protocol No. 1.
II. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 1 OF PROTOCOL No. 1 ON
ACCOUNT OF THE DESTRUCTION OF THE ALCOHOL
272. The applicant companies complained that the seizure and
destruction of the consignments of alcohol breached their right under
Article 1 of Protocol No. 1.
273. Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 reads as follows:
“Every natural or legal person is entitled to the peaceful enjoyment of his
possessions. No one shall be deprived of his possessions except in the public interest
and subject to the conditions provided for by law and by the general principles of
international law.
The preceding provisions shall not, however, in any way impair the right of a State
to enforce such laws as it deems necessary to control the use of property in
accordance with the general interest or to secure the payment of taxes or other
contributions or penalties.”
274. The Court has stated on many occasions that Article 1 of
Protocol No. 1 comprises three distinct rules. However, these three rules are
not “distinct in the sense of being unconnected” and should be construed in
the light of the general principle contained in the first rule, which enunciates
the principle of the peaceful enjoyment of property (see Broniowski
v. Poland [GC], no. 31443/96, § 134, ECHR 2004‑V). Thus, the Court has
to determine whether the interference was in accordance with the domestic
law of the respondent State and whether it achieved a “fair balance”
between the demands of the general interest of the community and the
requirements of the protection of the individual’s fundamental rights (see,
among many other authorities, Former King of Greece and Others
v. Greece [GC], no. 25701/94, § 89, ECHR 2000‑XII, with further
references).
275. The Court observes that the applicant companies’ complaint
concerned two distinct events: first, the seizure of the alcohol by the
investigative authorities, and second, the destruction of the two
consignments. The seizure and the destructions of the alcohol were ordered
on different legal grounds and pursued different aims. In the circumstances
the Court considers that it must examine those two situations separately. It
will start with the destruction of the two consignments.