European Court of Human Rights

Court's judgments and decisions by country. Finland application no. 30000..39999. Türkiye İş Bankasi, Pitkänen, D, Elo, Reinboth and Others, Petroff, Nikula, K.P., Fortum Corporation, Nuutinen, Hannu Lehtinen, G, Alatulkkila and Others, H.L., Launikari, R, Lehtinen, R.H., Goussev and Marenk, Pietiläinen, H.K., Fryckman, Soini, Backlund, Backlund, Vienonen and Others, Niskasaari and Others, Bäck, Niva, Mariapori, Suominen, Oy Hopotihoi Suomen Lelukamarit Toy & Hobby Ltd and Matti Kangasluoma, H.A.L., T.K. and S.E., N, Jaanti, Mild and Virtanen, Horsti, Stark and Others.

1. 30013_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Türkiye İş Bankasi v. Finland. Application no. 30013/96. -- On 17 August 1977 the applicant issued a letter of guarantee of 5,017,000 US Dollars (USD) to a Turkish company called TEK on behalf of a Finnish co-operative society called Metex. A Finnish bank, Kansallis-Osake-Pankki (KOP), issued a counter-guarantee in favour of the applicant. On 28 April 1988, the City Court (raastuvanoikeus, rådstuvurätt) of Helsinki ordered KOP not to make any payments under the counter-guarantee for the bank guarantee in question.
2. 30508_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Pitkänen v. Finland. Application no. 30508/96. -- The applicants are a married Finnish couple, born in 1957 and 1955 respectively and resident in Helsinki. In 1987 they bought a real property from the owner of a neighbouring property, L., who had undertaken to tear down a lean-to which the latter had constructed partly on the land purchased by the applicants before splitting it up into a separate property. The applicants and L. allegedly reached a further agreement to the effect that the latter consented to the applicants’ construction of a car shelter which would be connected to a new sauna building which L. agreed to construct on his own property so as to replace the sauna in his lean-to. On 26 January 1988 the Helsinki Building Inspection (rakennus-valvontavirasto, byggnadsinspektionen) granted permission to demolish the lean-to. Following that demolition, the Helsinki Building Board (rakennuslautakunta, byggnadsnämnden), on 23 February 1988, granted the applicants permission to construct a dwelling-house and a car shelter on their property. L. did not appeal but refused to demolish the whole of his lean-to and to construct the new sauna building to be connected to the applicants’ dwelling. In August 1988 L. was prohibited from using his existing sauna as its chimney top was found to be partly under the roof level of the applicants’ car shelter. The applicants’ offer to have the chimney top extended was refused by L.
3. 30542_04.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of D. v. Finland. Application no. 30542/04. -- On 19 July 2000 the applicant’s daughter E., born in June 1997, was first interviewed at a hospital child psychiatric clinic on a suspicion that she had been sexually abused by the applicant. That suspicion was initially based on E.’s own account of what her father had done to her. Dr S. examined E. at the clinic on 2, 4 and 8 August 2000. The sessions were recorded on videotape. Following those sessions the hospital staff proposed that a meeting be arranged between the applicant and E. to enable the observation of their interaction. Such a meeting was never held, presumably due to the opposition of E.’s mother, the applicant’s former wife. On 7 August 2000 the applicant met a social worker and a nurse at the hospital. He denied any sexual abuse, suspecting that the mother had manipulated E. into saying negative things about him in order to prevent his visits with the child. The applicant and E.’s mother had divorced in 1998 and they had not been able to agree on the child’s custody and visiting rights. They had subsequently been afforded joint custody of E. by a court. Against this background, the applicant urged that other possible reasons for E.’s behaviour than sexual abuse be taken into consideration. In a feedback discussion held on 14 September 2000 Dr S. informed the applicant about the results of the examinations, which in his opinion supported the suspicion of abuse by the applicant. The applicant was told that a meeting between him and E. was to be arranged and that he would be informed about the date of the meeting later on. The applicant requested copies of E.’s examination reports. No meeting between the applicant and E. was arranged. As copies of E.’s examination reports had not been sent to the applicant, his counsel made fresh requests to that end on 3 and 14 November 2000. She also insisted that the applicant be heard regarding the examinations. On 15 November 2000 E. was examined at the clinic by Dr H. That session was also videotaped. No meeting with the applicant was arranged in respect of the results of that examination.
4. 30742_02.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Elo v. Finland. Application no. 30742/02. -- The applicant was born in 1974 and lives in Rauma, Finland. The applicant worked as a sheet-iron worker. He had graduated from secondary school and had received training in technical design. He had also taken a course in management with the intention of carrying on his father's sheet-iron business. On 17 October 1996 he was involved in an accident at his place of work. He sustained injuries to his legs and heels. After the accident he commenced business studies at a university in 1999. An insurance company granted the applicant an allowance for 100% reduction of his working capacity for the period from 18 October 1996 to 16 October 1997. The same insurance company also granted the applicant an industrial injury pension for the period from 17 October 1997 to 31 August 1999.
5. 30865_08.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Reinboth and Others v. Finland. Application no. 30865/08. -- The first and second applicants were born in 1963 and 1948 and live in Helsinki. The applicant company is based in Helsinki. The applicant company is the publisher of a daily newspaper called Helsingin Sanomat which has a circulation of approximately 430,000. The first applicant was a journalist and the second applicant the editor-in-chief of the publication at the relevant time. On 3 February 2000, during the presidential election campaign, a short article was published in the newspaper Ilta-Sanomat, entitled “The ex-husband of [R. U.] and the person in charge of communications for the [E.A.] campaign have found each other”. The article stated that P.N., who was separated from his wife, had found a new partner, O.T. The wife of P.N. was known as a political reporter in the election-related TV debates and previously as a news reader. It was mentioned in the article that O.T. was in charge of communications for the E. A. campaign and that, in her civilian life, O.T. was the communications manager in a specified pension insurance company and a mother. The article went on to state that, before joining the campaign, O.T. had been active in the same political party as P.N. and that she had been involved in some “insider committees”. The article continued to note that P.N. worked as a director for F., a company promoting Finnish exports, and that in the 1990s he had been posted in New York, where his wife had followed him, taking leave from her own job. The article stated that P.N. and his wife had two children and that they had separated in the autumn of 1999. Pictures of O.T. and P.N.'s wife were included in the article. On 1 February 2002 the journalist and the editor-in-chief of Ilta-Sanomat were convicted by the Forssa District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) for having violated O.T.'s private life by publishing the original article. On 12 December 2002 and 4 July 2005, respectively, the Turku Court of Appeal (hovioikeus, hovrätten) and the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen) upheld the judgment. These proceedings were public. On 2 and 10 February 2002 the applicant company published two articles on the trial and the judgment of the Forssa District Court, written by the first applicant and approved by the second applicant.
6. 31021_06.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Petroff v. Finland. Application no. 31021/06. -- The applicant was born in 1951 and lives in Helsinki. On 6 February 1997 the applicant was questioned as a suspect regarding an aggravated tax offence. The charges became pending before the District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) on 17 November 1997. In the period between 20 March 1998 and 17 May 2001 the bailiff unsuccessfully tried to reach the applicant at least three times: once in March 1998 at an address in Helsinki and twice, in January and June 1999, via the post box used by the applicant's company in Helsinki. It appears from the documents provided that the applicant called the bailiff on or after 20 March 1998 informing him of a new address outside Helsinki. However, there is no indication that the bailiff tried to reach him at that or any other address than those mentioned above. As is customary in cases where a person cannot be found by the bailiff, a warrant for the applicant's arrest was issued on 24 June 1999. The warrant was subsequently renewed at regular intervals. On 17 May 2001, while serving a prior prison sentence, the applicant was located by the bailiff and served with the summons. The District Court held preparatory hearings on 5 December 2002 and 11 February 2003. The main hearing was organised over two days, on 24 and 26 March 2003. The applicant and four witnesses were heard. Two of those witnesses testified on the applicant's behalf. On 5 May 2003 the District Court convicted the applicant of an accounting offence and aggravated tax fraud. The charges with regard to a third offence had been withdrawn due to its having become time-barred. The applicant was sentenced to seven months' imprisonment.
7. 31611_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Nikula v. Finland. Application no. 31611/96. -- In 1992-93 the applicant appeared as defence counsel in the Kokkola City Court (raastuvanoikeus, rådstuvurätt) in two sets of criminal proceedings against her client I.S. and others. The applicant acted as counsel under the 1973 Cost-Free Proceedings Act (laki maksuttomasta oikeudenkäynnistä, lag om fri rättegång 87/1973) with the City Court's consent. In the 1992 trial the public prosecutor, T., requested that I.S., his brother S.S. and L.O. be temporarily barred from conducting business (liiketoimintakielto, näringsförbud). The request had been triggered by the winding up of various companies which the defendants had owned or in which they had held positions of trust. At a hearing on 4 March 1992 T. argued, inter alia, that regardless of whether S.S. had actually participated in the administration of the companies, he should be barred from conducting business, given his formal membership of their boards of directors. Evidence was heard from the companies' bookkeeper, M.H., who was one of the witnesses. Those proceedings ended with a decision of 9 February 1993 rendered by the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen).
8. 31764_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of K.P. v. Finland. Application no. 31764/96. -- In February 1991 the applicant suffered a whiplash injury to her neck as a result of a traffic accident. Her insurance company P. paid her a disability allowance until the end of August 1991. In October 1991 the insurance company refused her a further allowance, considering her continuing disability to be caused by other physical illnesses from which she had been suffering prior to the accident. The Board for Accident Compensation (tapaturmalautakunta, olycksfallsnämnden) rejected her appeal. Her further appeal to the Insurance Court (vakuutusoikeus, försäkringsdomstolen) was rejected in November 1992 and the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen) refused her leave to appeal in March 1993.
9. 32559_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of the Fortum Corporation v. Finland. Application no. 32559/96. -- The applicant is a multinational company specialising, inter alia, in the wholesale of petrochemical products, as was Neste at the time of relevance to the case. In light of submissions lodged by another company in the field – Suomalainen Energiaosuuskunta (“SEO”) – the Competition Office (kilpailuvirasto, konkurrensverket), on 11 October 1993, initiated proceedings before the Competition Council (kilpailuneuvosto, konkurrensrådet), requesting that Neste be ordered to cease abusing its dominant position on the Finnish market for motor engine fuel. In the view of the Competition Office the reductions in Neste's wholesale prices discriminated against some of its clients, thereby violating the 1992 Act on Competition Restrictions (laki kilpailunrajoituksista, lag om konkurrensbegränsningar 480/1992). The Competition Office therefore requested that Neste be ordered to cease and desist from applying certain pricing criteria. In a further submission of 11 February 1994 the Competition Office requested that an administrative fine (seuraamusmaksu, påföljdsavgift) be imposed. As a new fact the Competition Office referred to Neste's unwillingness to concede that it had been violating the relevant provisions and accordingly to change the price of fuel sold to SEO.
10. 32842_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Nuutinen v. Finland. Application no. 32842/96. -- In 1987 the applicant was convicted of having caused danger to others and sentenced to one year's imprisonment. In 1990 the Kuopio City Court (raastuvanoikeus, rådstuvurätten) convicted him of attempted manslaughter and sentenced him to three years' imprisonment. The court had regard to an opinion on his mental state submitted by the Unit for Forensic Psychiatry of the Kuopio County Prison on 29 June 1990 as well as to a related opinion of the National Medico-Legal Board (lääkintöhallitus, medicinalstyrelsen) of 11 July 1990. The Board had concluded that the applicant had committed the offence while not fully in control of his faculties but that he was not in need of psychiatric care. On 21 January 1992 the Kuopio City Court convicted the applicant of having threatened and assaulted his then girlfriend H and of having subjected her to coercion. Those offences were found to have been committed while he was not fully in control of himself during H's pregnancy in October 1991, when their relationship had been ending. The applicant was sentenced to three months' imprisonment. In March 1992 H gave birth to a daughter, I. The two subsequently moved from Kuopio to Helsinki. In November 1992 the applicant was released from prison and recognised I as his child. In the light of H's objections a judge of the Kuopio City Court refused to confirm the recognition.
11. 32993_02.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Hannu Lehtinen v. Finland. Application no. 32993/02. -- The applicant was born in 1959 and was resident in Siltakylä at the time of his death. At the material time the applicant was the majority owner of a limited liability company providing bakery and café services. The company is not an applicant before the Court. In 1999 the Uusimaa Tax Office carried out a tax inspection of the company’s books for the years 1996-1998. The tax inspector interviewed the applicant and three persons who were working, or had worked, for the company: Mr T.L., Ms H.T. and Mr R.L. He drew up an inspection report dated 2 September 1999 and two inspection letters dated 6 September 1999. He found that there were deficiencies in the company’s book-keeping and that it had failed to enter as income part of the retail sales during the tax years 1996, 1997 and 1998. Basing himself on the company’s turnover, books and the remaining cash register printouts, he estimated the amounts at 140,000 Finnish marks (FIM), FIM 100,000 and FIM 130,000 respectively. He considered that the missing sales should be treated as disguised payments of dividends for the purposes of assessing the tax liability of both the company and the applicant and therefore the applicant’s estimated income should be increased by the above amounts. The Tax Office requested the company to submit its observations regarding the alleged errors in its tax returns for the fiscal years 1996-1998. In its observations of 23 August 1999 the company contested the allegation that certain sales had not been entered in the books. On 24 September 1999 the company and the applicant submitted their joint observations maintaining that all sales had been entered in the books and that the applicant had not received any disguised payments of dividends.
12. 33173_05.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of G. v. Finland. Application no. 33173/05. -- The applicant was born in 1944. The applicant worked as a judge in a District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) since 1976. Since the 1980s she has suffered from backache which has prevented her from working long hours and sometimes made it impossible for her to work. The supervising court, the Appeal Court (hovioikeus, hovrätten), questioned on several occasions her ability to continue to work. In 1991 and 1994 the Appeal Court concluded, however, that the applicant’s condition was not serious enough to justify her dismissal. In 2000 the issue was again brought up. On 6 June the senior judge of the District Court informed the Appeal Court about the applicant’s situation. On 19 June the Appeal Court requested the applicant to submit a medical certificate. On 8 September 2000 the applicant submitted a certificate which showed that she was capable of performing her judicial functions. On 18 September she submitted several other medical certificates to the court showing her fitness for work. On 16 October the Appeal Court decided to carry out an inspection of the District Court. The inspection was carried out on 10 November without the applicant’s knowledge. The head of personnel of the Appeal Court went to the District Court to interview the applicant’s colleagues about her situation. The colleagues and supervisors were given a questionnaire which they had to complete in writing. They were apparently also shown statistics on the court’s workload, the division of work and the applicant’s absences. On 21 December 2000 the applicant sent the Appeal Court the results of her medical examinations as well as a further medical opinion drawn up by her doctor. She requested that her case be decided on the basis of these materials together with the medical opinions which she had previously submitted. On 3 January 2001 the Appeal Court prepared a report on the inspection of the District Court carried out on 10 November 2000. According to that report, the applicant’s share of the work had been minimal in comparison with the other judges’ workload. The report concluded that the medical examinations conducted so far did not give a correct picture of the applicant’s state of health and capacity to work, and that the conditions justifying a further medical examination under the Civil Servants Act were therefore fulfilled. On 9 March 2001 the Appeal Court decided that the case could not be decided on the basis of the existing materials. It thus requested the applicant to undergo a thorough and objective medical examination at the State’s expense.
13. 33538_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Alatulkkila and Others v. Finland. Application no. 33538/96. -- The applicants are owners of water areas, or are fishermen, in the Gulf of Bothnia. They are also elected representatives of their respective local fishing co-operative (kalastuskunta, fiskelag) or association for joint ownership (jakokunta, osakaskunta; samfällighet, delägarlag). By decision of 26 April 1996 and in application of the Fishing Regulation (kalastussääntö, fiskestadgan) for the Tornio River (Torniojoki/Torne älv) Area, the Finnish-Swedish Frontier Rivers Commission (suomalais-ruotsalainen rajajokikomissio, finsk-svenska gränsälvskommissionen) prohibited inter alia all fishing of salmon and sea trout in the relevant waters in the open sea during 1996 and 1997. Fishing other species in the relevant sea area with fixed equipment was prohibited during the periods 1 May-5 July 1996 and 1 May-5 July 1997. The Commission further prohibited all fishing of salmon and sea trout in the river area, except for fishing with hand-held equipment which was authorised on certain days of the week during the period 1 May-15 August 1996 and 1 May-15 August 1997. With some minor exceptions, all fishing in the river area was prohibited during the periods 15 September-15 November 1996 and 15 September-15 November 1997.
14. 33600_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of H.L. v. Finland. Application no. 33600/96. -- The applicant is a Finnish citizen, born in 1938 and resident in Helsinki. He was arrested on 16 September 1988 in connection with several offences concerning the insolvent liquidation of three different companies (X, Y and Z) he had been involved with as, inter alia, managing director. He was released on 28 September 1988 after a police investigation. On 13 December 1988 the applicant was charged with tax offences concerning companies Y and Z before the City Court of Lahti (raastuvanoikeus, rådstuvurätt; known as the District Court of Lahti (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätt) as from 1 December 1993). The prosecutor stated that the police investigations concerning suspected offences in relation to the insolvent liquidation had not yet been finished. A witness gave evidence at the hearing. The prosecutor and the applicant’s lawyer requested an adjournment, which was granted until 14 March 1989. At the hearing of 14 March 1989 the prosecutor stated that four further charges against the applicant concerning the insolvent liquidations were still under consideration. He requested an adjournment until 18 July 1989. The request was not opposed, and the case was adjourned until the requested date. The police investigations concerning company Z were finished on 18 May 1989. The results obtained were delivered to the prosecutor for a prosecution to be brought.
15. 34120_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Launikari v. Finland. Application no. 34120/96. -- The applicant is a minister of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. He held office as head of division in the Centre for Foreign Affairs of the Church (kirkon ulkomaanasiain keskus, kyrkans utrikescentral), when the National Church Board (kirkkohallitus, kyrkostyrelsen) began disciplinary proceedings and, on 19 February 1987, dismissed him from his office for having acted in breach of his official duties. The applicant appealed to the Supreme Administrative Court (korkein hallinto-oikeus, högsta förvaltningsdomstolen) which, on 21 September 1987, rejected the appeal.
16. 34141_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of R. v. Finland. Application no. 34141/96. -- The applicant was born in 1958. The applicant is the father of M., born in wedlock in November 1987. The family moved in 1989 to the location where the authorities’ measures outlined below took place. In 1990 M.’s mother began to suffer from mental illness, including suicidal behaviour. Occasionally the applicant had to protect M. against the mother’s attempted assaults. As from the beginning of 1991 M. was in part-time day care, which was a support measure for both the child and his parents.
17. 34147_96.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Lehtinen v. Finland. Application no. 34147/96. -- The applicant was born in 1950 and lives in Järvenpää. On 11 October 1993 the National Bureau of Investigation (keskusrikospoliisi, centralkriminalpolisen) interrogated the applicant as a suspect in the offence of aiding and abetting an aggravated embezzlement. The pre-trial investigation was concluded on 15 December 1993 and the file was transmitted to the public prosecutor on 17 December 1993. The indictment was served on the applicant on 14 March 1996. On 9 September 1996 criminal proceedings were instituted against him and three other defendants before the District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätt) of Tuusula. The prosecutor charged two of them with aggravated embezzlement and the applicant and another co-defendant with aiding and abetting the said offence between 9 June and 22 August 1989. The complainant, now a limited liability company to which the ownership of a bank group had been transferred, joined the proceedings and presented an accessory claim for damages and legal costs. All defendants denied the charges.
18. 34165_05.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of R.H. v. Finland. Application no. 34165/05. -- The applicant was born in 1953. In January 2002 the applicant went to a bar for a few drinks. He met his female acquaintance who was in the company of two 17-year-old girls whom he had not met before. Afterwards, they all decided to leave the bar in a taxi. They dropped off the applicant’s acquaintance at her home and continued to the applicant’s apartment. The applicant, and apparently also the girls, continued drinking and talking. According to the statement given by the applicant in the District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten), after a while he called a taxi for the girls and gave them money for the fare. He claims that the next time he heard of the girls was about four months later when the police contacted him and suspected him of a sexual offence. The girls’ version of the early evening’s events was roughly the same as the applicant’s but differed considerably as concerned the events at his apartment. The girls claimed that while they were in the applicant’s apartment, he had sexual intercourse with one of the girls after she had fallen asleep, and that he attempted to rape the other one. Immediately after this had happened, the girls decided to leave. One of the girls called a taxi and the applicant gave them money for the fare. When they got home, the mother of one of the girls called the police. A police patrol came and the police interviewed the girls. The girl who alleged that she had been raped refused to see a doctor. The applicant was questioned for the first time on 21 May 2002. The public prosecutor brought charges against him on 20 November 2003. The District Court held an oral hearing on 31 March 2004 at which only the applicant and the girls were heard. On 5 May 2004 the District Court gave its judgment. It acknowledged that the parties’ accounts of the facts diverged greatly. The majority of the District Court judges found that the girls’ account was more reliable than the applicant’s. Their stories were coherent and consistent. It was not credible that the girls could have invented the allegations. The fact that the girl who had been raped did not see a doctor immediately after the incident was of no relevance. The applicant was convicted of sexual abuse and attempted coercion into sexual intercourse (sukupuoliyhteyteen pakottamisen yritys, försök till tvingande till samlag), sentenced to a conditional prison sentence of 8 months and 15 days and fined. One judge found the applicant’s account of the facts to be more reliable and gave a dissenting opinion.
19. 35083_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Goussev and Marenk v. Finland. Application no. 35083/97. -- The applicants were born in 1980 and 1972 respectively and live in Helsinki. In November 1995 a group of young people organised a sit-in on the premises of a department store in Helsinki, Oy Stockmann Ab (presently Oyj Stockmann Abp; henceforth “Stockmann”), criticising it for selling fur coats and thereby participating in cruelty to animals. Around the same time various pamphlets and posters had appeared in Helsinki, criticising the fur trade in general and Stockmann in particular. The group had to be forcibly removed from the store. In March 1996 Stockmann requested a pre-trial investigation into “the distribution to the public of printed matters purporting to be produced on the company’s behalf but which had not been commissioned by [it]”. Should the police find that a criminal offence had been committed, Stockmann requested that the matter be brought to the attention of the public prosecutor. The request was registered as a matter of suspected public defamation.
20. 35999_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Pietiläinen v. Finland. Application no. 35999/97. -- The applicant was born in 1943 and lives in Laukaa. On 5 January 1987 criminal investigations were instituted against the applicant who was taken into police custody the same day in respect of, inter alia, alleged tax frauds. He was released on 16 January 1987. On 5 July and 31 August 1990 the applicant was summoned to appear before the Helsinki City Court (raastuvanoikeus, rådstuvurätt, as from 1 December 1993 Helsinki District Court, käräjäoikeus, tingsrätt) indicted for several aggravated tax frauds. The alleged offences concerned the importation of parts of vehicles and failure to pay relevant tax for them. The relevant decisions of the tax authorities after the clearance of the taxes were not yet final as the applicant had appealed against them. The first hearing before the District Court was held on 14 November 1990. The complainants and one of the four defendants, MI, had not yet been summoned. The Public Prosecutor charged the applicant with ten aggravated tax frauds, some of which he had allegedly committed together with other defendants, including MI. The applicant’s lawyer asked to be allowed to reply to the charges later. At the request of the Public Prosecutor the case was adjourned until 3 April 1991.
21. 36065_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of H.K. v. Finland. Application no. 36065/97. -- The applicant was born in 1968. The applicant is the father of two children, K. born in 1988 and H. born in October 1990. He and the mother of the children divorced in January 1992, having lived apart since November 1990 and K. having lived with his mother and H. with the applicant. The applicant assumed the care of H. some ten days after her birth. According to an agreement reached in connection with the separation and confirmed by the Social Welfare Board, K. was to remain with the mother and H. with the applicant. The parents had joint custody of the children. M. cohabited with the applicant from March to October 1994. Following their separation, she contacted the social welfare authorities, alleging that H. had been sexually abused by the applicant. The child's stories and behaviour had attracted M.'s attention and she had observed H. frequently touching her genitals and masturbating when going to sleep. M. also reported her suspicions to the family day care nurse. The applicant was not informed of the reports.
22. 36288_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Fryckman v. Finland. Application no. 36288/97. -- The applicant was born in 1951 and lives in Helsinki. On 14 December 1992 the tax authority filed a criminal complaint against the applicant and two other persons, suspecting them of debtor’s dishonesty or aiding and abetting the commission of such an offence in relation to transactions between two companies, Osakeyhtiö Six (as of 1997 Fryckman-yhtiö Oy) and Moniplan Oy. On 30 December 1988 Osakeyhtiö Six had sold to Moniplan Oy the shares of its subsidiaries Six-Myynti Oy (later Seroponex Oy) and Aromimauste Oy (later Cenoporex Oy). The above-mentioned contract had later been declared null and void in civil proceedings. The criminal proceedings related to several sets of criminal investigations. Of these, the earliest one concerned the applicant’s alleged offence of debtor’s dishonesty. On 22 March 1993 the applicant was interrogated as a suspect by the police. On 14 May 1993 the administrator of Cenoporex Oy and Seroponex Oy, which by that stage had been wound-up, requested that charges be brought. On 16 November 1993 the public prosecutor preferred charges against the applicant.
23. 36404_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Soini and others v. Finland. Application no. 36404/97. -- The applicants are Finnish citizens. Their dates of birth and places of residence are set out in the Annex. On 25 November 1995 a group of young people organised a sit-in in the premises of a department store in Helsinki, Oy Stockmann Ab (presently Oyj Stockmann Abp; henceforth “Stockmann”), criticising it for selling fur coats and thereby participating in cruelty to animals. Around the same time various pamphlets and posters had appeared in Helsinki, criticising the fur trade in general and Stockmann in particular. The group had to be forcibly removed from the store. In March 1996 Stockmann requested a pre-trial investigation into “the distribution to the public of printed matters purporting to be produced on the company’s behalf but which had not been commissioned by [it]”. Should the police find that a criminal offence had been committed, Stockmann requested that the matter be brought to the attention of the public prosecutor. The request was registered as a matter of suspected public defamation. In the ensuing pre-trial investigation 36 persons, including the applicants, were heard as suspects in respect of the offence of public defamation. On 11 April 1996 the police conducted a search at the home of Mr Miettinen, relying on chapter 4, section 1, and chapter 5, section 1 of the Coercive Measures Act (pakkokeinolaki, tvångsmedelslagen 450/1987). According to the minutes, the search was carried out for the purpose of an investigation into malicious damage (vahingonteko, skadegörelse) of which his room mates – A.L. (not an applicant) and Ms Karjalainen – had been suspected. The police seized pamphlets critical of Stockmann’s sale of fur products as well as letters related to Mr Miettinen’s participation in an association of anti-fur activists.
24. 36498_05.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Backlund v. Finland. Application no. 36498/05. -- The applicant was born in 1937 and lives in Norrnäs. The applicant was born out of wedlock. His mother, grandmother and everyone around him always considered N.S. as his father. N.S. never married or had other children. On 1 October 1976 the Paternity Act came into force. The transitional provisions in the Implementing Act of the Paternity Act state that paternity proceedings with regard to a child born before the entry into force of the law had to be initiated within five years, that is, before 1 October 1981. Moreover, no claim could be examined after the death of the father. No such restrictions exist for children born after the entry into force of the Paternity Act. N.S. was placed under guardianship in 2000. In May 2002 the applicant requested the Korsholm District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) to establish paternity. The court ordered DNA tests, which established with 99.4 % certainty that N.S. was the applicant's biological father.
25. 36498_05_B.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Backlund v. Finland. Application no. 36498/05. -- Just satisfaction. In a judgment delivered on 6 July 2010 (“the principal judgment”), the Court held that, even having regard to the margin of appreciation left to the State, the application of a rigid time-limit for the introduction of paternity proceedings, regardless of the circumstances of an individual case and, in particular, the obligation to take action within that time-limit, impaired the very essence of the right to respect for one’s private life under Article 8 of the Convention. In view of the above, and in particular having regard to the absolute nature of the limitation period and the Supreme Court’s refusal to allow any exceptions thereto, the Court found that a fair balance had not been struck between the different interests involved and, therefore, that there had been a failure to secure the applicant’s right to respect for his private life. Accordingly, the Court found that there had been a violation of Article 8 of the Convention (Backlund v. Finland, no. 36498/05, 6 July 2010).
26. 36989_05.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Vienonen and Others v. Finland. Application no. 36989/05. -- The applicants live in Kuusjoki, Perniö, Tuohittu and Humppila respectively. The first applicant and Mr Lehtonen were from 1989 to 1991 members of the board of directors of a local bank which subsequently went bankrupt. On 30 December 1993 the successor property management company of the bank, which was owned by the Finnish State, initiated civil proceedings before the Salo District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten), claiming compensation from the first applicant and Mr Lehtonen. The company claimed that the first applicant and Mr Lehtonen along with other persons had caused the bank damage exceeding 134 million euros (EUR) through accepting loan applications and neglecting their duty to supervise the acts of the management. Later the amount of damages claimed was lowered to EUR 90 million. The District Court held preparatory meetings in the case on 8 March 1994, 8 November 1995, 9-10 January 1996 and 25 January 1996. On 5 February 1996 the court gave an interlocutory judgment concerning succession issues and the application of the statute of limitations. During the preparatory meetings the parties agreed to wait for the outcome of other proceedings which were closely related to the case and could provide additional information for its resolution. After the preparatory meetings the case was processed only in writing. The judge responsible for the case was changed a number of times and the parties, despite several attempts, were not able to settle the case. During the District Court proceedings the first applicant and Mr Lehtonen, among others, requested that the proceedings be terminated and that the complaints of the successor company be either rejected or dismissed without examining the merits. They maintained that, according to the Convention, proceedings should be terminated within a reasonable time. That rule had not been complied with in their case and the proceedings should therefore be discontinued.
27. 37520_07.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Niskasaari and Others v. Finland. Application no. 37520/07. -- The first and second applicants were born in 1952 and 1948 respectively and live in Helsinki. The applicant company has its seat in Helsinki. The first applicant is a freelance journalist and the second applicant editor-in-chief of Seura magazine. On 20 December 1996 an article written by the first applicant was published in issue no. 51-52/1996 of Seura magazine. It stated in the headline that the Child Ombudsman in the Mannerheim League for Child Welfare (Mannerheimin lastensuojeluliitto, Mannerheims barnskyddsförbund), which is a non-governmental organisation, had been removed from office (in Finnish: “Lapsiasiamies hyllylle”) and in the text, inter alia, that the Ombudsman (henceforth “X.”) had been transferred to do research work and that she would not be replaced as Ombudsman (“... [hänet] siirretään tutkijaksi, eikä hänelle palkata sijaista lapsiasiamieheksi”). The article also stated that the Ombudsman had no training or experience in research work. The general tone of the article was critical. During the subsequent court proceedings the first applicant argued that when writing it he had relied on information given in a tabloid article published on 11 December 1996. He considered that no reason had emerged to believe that the information contained therein was not true.
28. 37598_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Bäck v. Finland. Application no. 37598/97. -- The applicant was born in 1957 and lives in Karperö. In 1988 and 1989 he and another person contracted to guarantee a bank loan granted to N. As N. was eventually unable to meet the reimbursement conditions, the applicant and his co-guarantor each paid the bank approximately 113,000 Finnish markkas (FIM) (approximately 19,000 euros (EUR)), excluding interest, in 1991. In 1995 N. applied for a debt adjustment in accordance with the 1993 Adjustment of Debts (Private Individuals) Act (laki yksityishenkilön velkajärjestelystä, lag om skuldsanering för privatpersoner 57/1993 – “the 1993 Act”) and proposed a payment schedule for the court’s approval. The applicant opposed the request, arguing that such an adjustment could lead to an unjustified deprivation of his property, consisting of his claim against N. The applicant argued that N. was young and healthy and could be expected to be able to reimburse his debts to the guarantors in due course. In the alternative, the applicant requested that the adjustment of N.’s debts be postponed.
29. 37730_02.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Niva v. Finland. Application no. 37730/02. -- The applicant was born in 1957 and lives in Alapitkä. On 5 October 1994 the applicant sustained injuries during an operation on his back. On 14 March 1997 he issued a summons claiming pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and compensation for costs from the Patient Insurance Association (potilasvakuutusyhdistys, patientförsäkrings-förening; later renamed as the Patient Insurance Board (potilasvakuutuskeskus, patientförsäkringscentral)). On 18 June 1998 the Helsinki District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) found the medical treatment inadequate and ordered the defendant to pay the applicant non-pecuniary damage for pain and suffering and to reimburse his medical expenses and legal costs. Both parties appealed to the Helsinki Court of Appeal (hovioikeus, hovrätten). On 10 March 1999 the Court of Appeal invited the National Authority for Medicolegal Affairs (terveydenhuollon oikeusturvakeskus, rättskyddscentralen för hälsovården; “the Authority”) to submit its report on the matter.
30. 37751_07.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Mariapori v. Finland. Application no. 37751/07. -- The applicant was born in 1943 and lives in Muurola. In December 1997 the applicant, a tax expert, was the defendant's witness in a case where the public prosecutor had brought charges for tax fraud. The evidence in the case was based, inter alia, on a tax inspection report drawn up by tax inspectors A. and B. The applicant provided her own calculation of the defendant's taxable income. The defendant was convicted of tax fraud and the judgment became final in June 1999...In 1998 the applicant published a book about taxation in which the above-mentioned court case was cited. It was mentioned that “[i]n any event, the senior tax inspector [A.] committed perjury fully knowingly and intentionally. But why not as her husband is the public prosecutor [X.]. who works for [name of the office]”. Five thousand copies of the book were printed, of which about a thousand copies had been given away by the end of August 1999. On 18 November 1999 the applicant was questioned by the police for the first time. The applicant gave her closing statement in the pre-trial investigation on 27 January 2000.
31. 37801_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Suominen v. Finland. Application no. 37801/97. -- The applicant was born in 1942 and lives in Forssa. The applicant was the owner and managing director of company X. Between 26 June 1991 and 16 February 1993 she had made arrangements with a bank to finance her company. In the spring of 1993 the bank refused to grant any more loans and made a request that part of the existing loans be paid back. On 24 February 1995 the bank instituted civil proceedings against the applicant before the District Court of Pori, seeking the return of loans made to her. The applicant received an invitation dated 2 January 1996 to the preparatory hearing at the District Court. The purpose of the preparatory hearing was explained in the invitation, which indicated that the applicant had to list all the evidence she intended to present and what she intended to prove with each piece of evidence. She was also advised to present all the written evidence invoked. The preparatory hearing was held on 25 January 1996. According to the applicant, she was prepared to hand in all the documents she wanted to submit as evidence. The presiding judge admitted only two of the documents and a list on which all the documents were listed. The applicant was allegedly told that the remaining evidence could be presented at the main hearing. The main hearing was held on 8 February 1996. According to the applicant, she was denied the possibility to present the other evidence listed, because she had not submitted those documents earlier at the preparatory hearing. This is not mentioned in the minutes of the District Court.
32. 38158_07.html -- European Court of Human Rights. -- -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Oy Hopotihoi Suomen Lelukamarit Toy & Hobby Ltd and Matti Kangasluoma v. Finland. Application no. 38158/07. -- The applicant company has its headquarters in Rovaniemi. The second applicant was born in 1949 and lives in Kauniainen. The applicant company is a limited liability company, the shares of which are fully owned by the second applicant. The second applicant is the only member of the board of directors of the applicant company. On 5 December 1997 the Tax Office of Länsi-Suomi (verovirasto, skatteverket) requested that a distraint order be issued and the property of the applicant company seized for the second applicant’s unpaid taxes. The Tax Office had initiated a police investigation which had revealed that the registration documents of the applicant company had been forged. It was assumed that the company had been created in order to protect the second applicant’s business and assets. On 9 and 10 December 1997 the property of the company was seized in accordance with Chapter 4, section 10 of the Execution Act (ulosottolaki, utsökningslagen), as in force at the relevant time. On 17 December 1997 the applicant company apparently appealed against the distraint order, arguing that its property could not be seized for the second applicant’s unpaid taxes. The result of the appeal is not known. On 30 December 1997 the second applicant was declared bankrupt. The property seized prior to the bankruptcy was transferred to the bankruptcy estate on the basis of section 45 of the Bankruptcy Act (konkurssisääntö, konkursstadgan). This terminated the seizure procedure. It was decided on 13 March 1998 that the seized property could be liquidated and it was actually sold in November and December 1998. On 27 November 1998 the second applicant was convicted for having forged the company registration documents and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment. This judgment became final on 31 August 2000. On 8 December 1998 the applicant company filed an action against the second applicant’s bankruptcy estate and requested the court to order the sequestration of the value of the seized property, which was in the bankruptcy estate’s possession, and to confirm the company’s ownership of this property. By a decision of 4 June 1999 the Seinäjoki District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) refused to apply interim measures.
33. 38267_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of H.A.L. v. Finland. Application no. 38267/97. -- The applicant was born in 1953 and lives in Helsinki. On 4 October 1995 the local office of the Social Insurance Institution (kansaneläkelaitos, folkpensionsanstalten) granted the applicant a daily sickness allowance on account of his incapacity for work from 11 September 1995 onwards. On 16 October 1995 his allowance was extended until 31 October 1995. On 16 October 1995 Dr M.M., a psychiatrist treating the applicant, considered him incapacitated for work from 11 September 1995 until 31 March 1996 on account of his depression and anxiety. On the strength of that opinion the applicant requested that he be granted a daily sickness allowance for the period 1 November 1995-31 March 1996. The medical expert consulted by the local office of the Social Insurance Institution, Dr U.L., found in his opinion of 24 October 1995 that the applicant’s alleged incapacity for work was principally of a subjective nature, although the criteria for serious mental distress were not met. While not considering the applicant incapable for work, Dr U.L. recommended that an opinion be obtained from an expert in psychiatry before a new decision was reached on the applicant’s request. In his opinion of 27 October 1995 Dr K.K., a psychiatrist, found on the basis of the information available that the applicant had been capable of working as of 1 January 1995. Neither Dr U.L. nor Dr K.K. examined the applicant in person. Their identities and opinions were not known to the applicant until they were indicated by the Government in the course of the Convention proceedings.
34. 38581_97.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of T.K. and S.E. v. Finland. Application no. 38581/97. -- The applicants were born in 1963 and 1951 respectively. They were shareholders in two limited liability companies. It appears that at least S.E. was also in a management position in those companies. Both companies were in the process of being wound up from 1991. W., a lawyer working for the bank which was the main creditor of the companies, was appointed as the official receiver to control the assets of the companies. Having received a special auditor’s reports about the companies W., on 21 October 1992, requested the police to investigate whether offences had been committed in the companies before they went into liquidation. The police interview of the official receiver began on 9 December 1992 and continued in January 1993. S.E. was questioned by the police for the first time on 25 May 1993. That day he was also arrested and a large number of documents were seized from both the applicants. T.K. was questioned by the police on 27 May 1993. On 12 September 1994 the Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen) revoked the seizure of the documents, as requested by S.E., as the time-limit of four months had passed since they had been seized and no charges had been brought against the applicants during that time. The decision became a precedent (KKO 1994:83).
35. 38885_02.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of N. v. Finland. Application no. 38885/02. -- The applicant, born in 1972, originates from the former Zaire (currently the DRC). He arrived in Finland on 20 July 1998 and immediately applied for asylum. On his arrival in Finland the applicant filed an asylum request written in French, stating that he had left the DRC 13 months ago; that he had been trained to join the presidential guards and had been working as an informant in Office D of the special force responsible for protecting the then President Mobutu (Division Spéciale Présidentielle; “the DSP”); that he had belonged to the President’s and the DSP Commander-in-Chief’s inner circle; that he had been arrested in Angola while in the possession of a DSP badge and a photograph of Mobutu; that his life was in danger on account of his position and his Ngbandi origin; and that Laurent-Désiré Kabila’s regime (who had seized the power in the DRC in May 1997) had put out a warrant of arrest on former DSP agents. The applicant named three high-ranking officers within the DSP whose grades he also indicated.
36. 39105_05.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Jaanti v. Finland. Application no. 39105/05. -- The applicant was born in 1951 and lives in Espoo. He is an attorney. The applicant was suspected of aiding and abetting aggravated embezzlement. He was first questioned by the police on 28 September 1998. He was subsequently questioned again in connection with two other similar offences. On 14 December 2000 the public prosecutor brought charges against him and another defendant, R, in the Helsinki District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten). The court held its first session on 29 November 2001. In the course of the proceedings, the court was presented with written evidence, including 94 documents submitted by the applicant. It also received testimony from both defendants and twelve witnesses, four of whom were called by the applicant. The evidence included a written statement and the oral testimony of the Bankruptcy Ombudsman. On 10 May 2002 the court gave its judgment. It found that on 30 September 1994 the applicant had, as a receiver of a bankrupt’s estate, unlawfully transferred a substantial sum of money from the estate’s bank account to the account of his own law firm. The court also found that, on the same date, he had aided and abetted his associate R in the commission of two similar offences. The court convicted the applicant of aggravated embezzlement and two counts of aiding and abetting aggravated embezzlement and sentenced him to a suspended term of one year and four months’ imprisonment. R was found guilty of having made unlawful money transfers on several separate occasions between 29 April 1993 and 31 May 1996. He was convicted of two counts of aggravated embezzlement, as well as aiding and abetting the applicant’s aggravated embezzlement.
37. 39481_98_and_40227_98.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Mild and Virtanen v. Finland. Applications nos. 39481/98 and 40227/98. -- The applicants were born in 1967 and 1970 respectively and live in Vantaa. A shop selling fur coats in Kokkola was burgled on 1 March 1995. Two men, M. and R., were charged with aggravated theft before the District Court of Kokkola (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten). On 10 April 1995 the District Court convicted them both as charged. The convictions were based on their acknowledgement of the charges. The police investigation concerning the applicants as suspects in the above-mentioned offence began on 11 May 1995, when they were taken into police custody. The first applicant was arrested on 12 May 1995 by a decision of the District Court. The second applicant was arrested on the same day, but released in the afternoon. The criminal proceedings against the applicants were instituted before the above District Court on 5 June 1995. They were charged with aggravated theft. They were suspected of having stolen fur coats worth 327,500 Finnish marks (FIM; 55,081.55 euros (EUR)) as accomplices with M. and R., who had already been convicted of the same offence. The applicants denied the charges.
38. 39509_08.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Horsti v. Finland. Application no. 39509/08. -- The applicant was born in 1940 and lives in Tallinn. The applicant's father died in 1989. On 16 March 2001 a lawyer carried out the distribution of the estate, the applicant and his brother being its beneficiaries. On 17 September 2001 the applicant lodged a civil action against his brother with the Helsinki District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätt) contesting the distribution. On 8 October 2001 the court requested the applicant to supplement his application for a summons to be issued. It urged the applicant to give further particulars of his claims and the circumstances on which they were based and to indicate the evidence that he wished to present and what each piece of evidence was intended to prove, as required by Chapter 5, Article 2 of the Code of Judicial Procedure (oikeudenkäymiskaari, rättegångsbalken, 4/1734 with later amendments). The court further referred to Chapter 5, Article 6 of the Code, noting that in case of failure to comply with the request, the court could declare the action inadmissible or dismiss it. The applicant filed two submissions, dated 22 October 2001 and 2 April 2002. On 7 March 2003 the court sent the applicant another request, finding his submissions to be so incomplete and unclear that the defendant would not be able to respond to his action in an appropriate manner. The applicant filed two submissions, dated 31 March and 17 April 2003. On 23 July 2003 the defendant filed with the court his response to the action. He requested that it be declared inadmissible or dismissed stating, inter alia, that he was unable to respond to the claims due to the obscurity of the applicant's submissions. On 8 August 2003 the court requested the applicant to submit a detailed statement in reply to the defendant's pleading. It further urged the applicant to consider employing the services of a lawyer.
39. 39559_02.html -- European Court of Human Rights. The case of Stark and Others v. Finland. Application no. 39559/02. -- The applicants were born in 1937, 1945 and 1942, respectively. The first and second applicants live in Kaakamo and the third applicant in Kittilä. The applicants are fishermen operating in the maritime area at the mouth of the Kemi River by the city of Tornio. They fish small fish and rear salmon in private waters in the flow area of the Kemi River. The second applicant fishes also in waters leased from the State. In 1971 Finland and Sweden concluded the Frontier Rivers Agreement (Suomen ja Ruotsin välinen rajajokisopimus, gränsälvsöverenskommelsen mellan Finland och Sverige; SopS 53-54/1971), which included provisions on the right to fish in the Tornio River and its channels. The Fishing Regulation (kalastussääntö, fiskestadgan) was annexed to the Frontier Rivers Agreement. The Fishing Regulation was amended in 1979 and 1987 whereby the Finnish-Swedish Frontier Rivers Commission (rajajokikomissio, gränsälvskommissionen), established under the Frontier Rivers Agreement, was given the right to preserve certain fish species, or prohibit or restrict fishing using certain equipment or gear, if this was deemed necessary in order to safeguard future fish stocks. The fish to be protected in the area was the wild salmon of Tornio River. In June 1987 Finland and Sweden decided to discontinue the application of the Fishing Regulation. Subsequently, an Act for the Fishing in the Tornio River Fishing Area (kalastuksesta Tornionjoen kalastusalueella annettu laki; lag om fiske i fiskeområden i Torne älven; 494/1997, “the Tornio Fishing Act”) was passed. According to section 3 of the said Act the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland (“the Ministry”) was authorised to restrict fishing, inter alia, if this was deemed necessary in order to safeguard future fish stocks. By virtue of the Tornio Fishing Act, the Ministry issued Decision no. 496/1997 (“the 1997 Decision”), prohibiting all salmon and trout fishing throughout the year and all fishing with stationary gear during the period from 1 May until 5 July. The restrictions extended to the maritime area of the Kemi River belonging to the city of Tornio, i.e. the fishing waters used by the applicants.

European Court of Human Rights judgments and decisions -- Finland application no. 30000..39999