On May 19th 2015, the General Assembly of the judges of the Civil division of the Supreme Court of Cassation and the First and Second division of the Supreme Administrative Court enacted Interpretative decree № 2/2014 on interpretative case № 2/2014. By this decision they finally ruled under the competence of which court do the following cases fall: claims for damages from unlawful penal decrees and actions or inactions of the administration which imposes penalties. They also decided the question if the expenses incurred during these proceedings are subject to compensation. Until now there were two approaches to compensation of damages – the administrative courts under Art. 1, para.1 of the Law on the liability of the State and the Municipalities for Damages and before the civil courts (LLSMD) or before civil courts in accordance with Art. 49, read in conjunction with Art. 45 and next of the Obligations and Contracts Act. The controversial judicial practice was resolved with the decree which determined that these proceedings are under the jurisdiction of the administrative courts and are treated in accordance with Art. 1, para. 1 of LLSMD.
author: Vesela Velinova, attorney-at-law
Member of “Velinov and partner” Consulting House
