PROCEDURE

The case originated in an application (no. 45681/99) against the French Republic lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by a French national, Mr Alain Gutfreund (“the applicant”), on 6 January 1999.

The applicant was represented before the Court by Mr F. Vallens, a lawyer practising in Saverne. The French Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mr R. Abraham, Director of Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The applicant alleged, in particular, a lack of impartiality on the part of a judge in connection with a legal-aid application.

The application was allocated to the Third Section of the Court (Rule 52 § 1 of the Rules of Court). Within that Section, the Chamber that would consider the case (Article 27 § 1 of the Convention) was constituted as provided in Rule 26 § 1.

On 1 November 2001 the Court changed the composition of its Sections (Rule 25 § 1). This case was assigned to the newly composed Third Section (Rule 52 § 1).

By a decision of 25 April 2002, the Chamber declared the application partly admissible.

The applicant and the Government each filed observations on the merits (Rule 59 § 1).

THE FACTS

I. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE

By a penal order of 8 October 1997, the applicant was fined 1,000 French francs (FRF) for an assault on his wife that did not incapacitate her from work. On 8 December 1997 he applied to the Saverne Police Court to have that order set aside.

On 3 July 1998 the applicant was served by a court bailiff with a summons requiring him to attend the Police Court on 15 September 1998 to answer a charge of “intentional assault entailing no unfitness for work” on 24 July 1997. The offence was classified as a “Class 4 minor offence” and carried a maximum fine of FRF 5,000 under Article 131-13 of the Criminal Code.

On 11 August 1998 the applicant lodged a legal-aid application with the legal-aid office of the Saverne tribunal de grande instance, in accordance with the provisions of the Legal Aid Act of 10 July 1991 and its implementing decree of 19 December 1991.

He furnished evidence, which the legal-aid office accepted, that his monthly income was FRF 2,423. In accordance with section 4 of the 1991 Act, he claimed to be entitled to full legal aid.

A committee of the legal-aid office presided over by R. (as attested by a letter of November 2000 from the registry of the Saverne tribunal de grande instance) dismissed the application on 27 October 1998 as being “manifestly inadmissible, since it concern[ed] a Class 4 minor offence”.

On 13 November 1998 the applicant appealed against that decision to the President of the Saverne tribunal de grande instance. He said that in a similar case the Strasbourg tribunal de grande instance had construed the decree differently and granted legal aid. In an order of 16 September 1998, the Strasbourg tribunal de grande instance had noted a conflict between the decree and the Act and stated that to resolve it the decree had to be construed in the light of the purpose of the Act.

The appeal was heard by R., now sitting in his capacity as the President of the Saverne tribunal de grande instance. He upheld the impugned decision in an order of 27 November 1998, against which French law afforded no right of appeal (section 23, sub-paragraph 2, of the Act of 10 July 1991). He gave a number of reasons for dismissing the applicant’s appeal: “... although section 10 of the aforementioned Act [of 10 July 1991] provides that ‘legal aid shall be granted ... before all courts’ ..., it does not require it to be granted in all types of proceedings. ... the table appended to Article 90 of the decree and to which the decree refers for the calculation of counsel’s remuneration only contemplates an accused receiving assistance in the police court for Class 5 minor offences. ... that restriction cannot be due to an oversight on the part of the public authorities. ... it is not for either the legal-aid office or the president of the court concerned unilaterally to extend the scope of rules in respect of which no appeal has been made to the Conseil d’Etat. ... it is perfectly clear that the relevant table is restrictive in scope.”

On 15 December 1998 the applicant, assisted by a lawyer, attended the hearing at the Saverne Police Court. In a judgment delivered that same day, the court found him guilty of assault entailing no unfitness for work, but decided not to impose a penalty.