The claim by "A1+" may be a precedent at CC
On February 23, the RA Constitutional Court may make a turning decision, that is, of course, if it upholds the claim by "A1+".
"A1+" demands from the CC to acknowledge Part 1 of Article 204/28 of the Civil Trial Code, which doesn't allow RA citizens to take advantage of their right to judicial defense and realize decisions of the European Court in Armenia.
"With this case, the Cassation Court is opening its doors, but when we enter to restore our violated rights, the subject is closed. In other words, the revision of decisions taken at state instances on "A1+" is just a formality," said one of the advocates for "A1+", Ara Ghazaryan.
Accepting this case as a basis, recently the Cassation Court refused to fulfill the European Court's ruling favoring "A1+" in June 2008.
In the previous session at the CC, head of the legal division at the National Assembly Ashot Khachatryan, who was represented as the plaintiff, announced that the CC has already acknowledged Part 1 of Article 204/28 of the Civil Trial Code as anti-constitutional; in other words, the Cassation Court has denied the appeal by "A1+" by accepting the existing norm as a basis.
"This is not only the issue of "A1+". This will be a strategic decision that will solve the issue of fulfilling the rulings of the European Court in Armenia. In this case, the decision of the CC on the appeal filed by "A1+" may become a precedent," said another representative of "A1+" Artak Zeylanyan.
During the CC's previous session, president of the Constitutional Court Gagik Harutyunyan gave the National Assembly representative until February 23 to clarify why the National Assembly had included an anti-constitutional norm in the law.
Regardless of the CC ruling, Ara Ghazaryan reminded that the CE Council of Ministers controls the fulfillment of rulings of the European Court. "The delay of fulfilling the verdicts may become a motive for political pressure against the country. When the Council of Ministers is convinced that the country is avoiding fulfilling the ruling of the European Court, it uses its political levers to indicate how the ruling should be fulfilled."
If Armenia doesn't fulfill the European Court's ruling on "A1+", according to Ara Ghazaryan, the CE Ministerial Committee will give indications to Armenia's authorities in mid-2010. The lawyer also reminded that if the government doesn't fulfill the European Court's decision or commits violations, then that will serve as new grounds for appealing to the European Court again.
Let us remind that none of the state instances of Armenia have upheld the numerous claims by "A1+" since 2002.
