ANDREJEVA v. LATVIA JUDGMENT
37
107. The Government submitted that the question of just satisfaction
was not ready for decision and requested the Court to reserve it in
accordance with Rule 75 §§ 1 and 4 of the Rules of Court. They argued that
the national authorities, in particular the State Social-Insurance Agency,
would be much better placed to recalculate and, if necessary, index-link the
applicant’s monthly pension. In any event, the Government stated, firstly,
that the Court no longer had jurisdiction to make an award to the applicant
for pecuniary damage in respect of her employment for an entity based in
Ukraine (from 1973 to 1981), and, secondly, that the Court’s judgment
should not have retrospective effect.
108. In respect of non-pecuniary damage, the Government disputed that
there was a causal link between the violations found and the damage alleged
in points (b) and (c) of paragraph 105 above. As regards the alleged
violation of Article 6 § 1 of the Convention, the Government left the matter
to the Court’s discretion. They added, however, that in their opinion the
finding of a violation would in itself constitute sufficient just satisfaction for
any non-pecuniary damage the applicant might have suffered.
109. Lastly, the Government submitted that the question of the exact
calculation of the applicant’s pension might be more effectively dealt with
in the course of the procedure for the execution of the Court���s judgment,
under the supervision of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of
Europe, in accordance with Article 46 of the Convention.
110. In the Court’s view, the evidence available to it is sufficient to
conclude that the question of the application of Article 41 of the Convention
is ready for decision and should therefore be examined. The Court reiterates
at the outset that the respondent State remains free to choose the means by
which it will discharge its legal obligation under Article 46 of the
Convention, provided that such means are compatible with the conclusions
set out in the Court’s judgment (see Scozzari and Giunta v. Italy [GC],
nos. 39221/98 and 41963/98, § 249, ECHR 2000-VIII). Having regard to
the special circumstances of the case, in particular the recent approval of the
cooperation agreement on social security between the Russian Federation
and Latvia by the legislatures of both States (see paragraphs 44-45 above),
the Court considers that it is not required to indicate precisely what would
be the best means of ensuring the effective implementation of its judgment
in the applicant’s individual situation.
111. The Court further reiterates that the principle underlying the
provision of just satisfaction is that the applicant should, as far as possible,
be put in the position he or she would have enjoyed had the violation of the
Convention not occurred (see, mutatis mutandis, Kingsley v. the United
Kingdom [GC], no. 35605/97, § 40, ECHR 2002-IV). Furthermore, the
indispensable condition for making an award in respect of pecuniary
damage is the existence of a causal link between the damage alleged and the
violation found (see Nikolova v. Bulgaria [GC], no. 31195/96, § 73, ECHR