The applicant was charged with setting his house on fire after a row with his wife. He was acquitted on the grounds that, while there was a strong inferential case against him, it did not establish his guilt beyond reasonable doubt. He then brought a civil claim against his insurers for the loss of his house. Evidence was adduced, which included evidence that had been adduced at the criminal trial. The court dismissed his claim, holding that the insurance company had proved, on balance of probabilities that he was responsible for the fire.
Held: The civil proceedings did not involve bringing a ‘criminal charge’ against the applicant, and: ‘As to the further question of whether there were links between the criminal case and the ensuing compensation case such as to justify extending the scope of the application of article 6(2) to the latter, the Court reiterates that the outcome of the criminal proceedings was not decisive for the compensation issue. In this particular case, the situation was reversed: despite the applicant’s acquittal it was legally feasible to deny him insurance compensation for the destroyed house. Regardless of the conclusion reached in the criminal trial against the applicant, the compensation case was therefore not a direct sequel to the former or a consequence and concomitant of it.’
Citations:
48518/99, Unreported, 13 November 2003
Cited by:
Cited – Gale and Another v Serious Organised Crime Agency SC 26-Oct-2011
Civil recovery orders had been made against the applicant. He had been accused and acquitted of drug trafficking allegations in Europe, but the judge had been persuaded that he had no proper explanation for the accumulation of his wealth, and had . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Human Rights
Updated: 04 May 2022; Ref: scu.450287