COMPENSATORY MEASURES FOR PROPERTIES ABUSIVELY TAKEN OVER DURING THE COMMUNIST REGIME IN ROMANIA
COMPENSATORY MEASURES FOR PROPERTIES ABUSIVELY TAKEN OVER DURING THE COMMUNIST REGIME IN ROMANIA

Summary/Abstract: Nowadays, when many people still suffer from the consequences of the communist regime in Romania and the expropriations performed during that period, the entry into force of a special law was intended to facilitate the compensation procedure for entitled persons, by providing real and effective reparatory measures. Law no. 165/2013 regarding the measures for completing the restitution process, in kind or by equivalent, of immovable properties abusively taken over during the communist regime in Romania1 regulates the effective procedure for compensating immovable properties abusively taken over during the communist regime. The regulation of Law no. 165/2013 was needed after the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in the pilot - judgement of Maria Atanasiu and Others v. Romania on October 12, 20102. It was a legal solution to improve the mechanism of providing compensation in relation to the immovable property restitution, considering the observations and recommendations of the Strasbourg Court regarding the ineffectiveness of the existing domestic compensation mechanism at that time, which created a systemic, recurring and extensive problem. Among the main measures recommended by said regulation are those concerning the amendment of the restitution mechanism through a legislative reform that creates clear, accessible, simplified and predictable rules, coupled with a coherent case law and administrative practice, the establishment of binding and realistic deadlines and sanctions for each administrative stage.3 Altough the time passed, even in 2022 the European Court of Human Rights4 decided that there was a violation of Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention regarding the continued inefficiency of the mechanism for the restitution of immovable properties abusively taken over during the communist regime in Romania, despite the existence of new remedies under Law no. 165/2013. Within the rendered decision, the Court stated the violation regarding the non-execution of final decisions rendered by the courts of law, derisory values of the compensation measures, cancellation of the titles to property or of the cashing titles for the compensation by means of points etc. As the situations that may arise are very complex and the procedure regulated by the provisions of Law no. 165/2013 includes many regulations, in this study we will try to highlight some of the main issues that entitled individuals face in the process of obtaining compensatory measures.

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