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EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS    510  6.7.2000   Press release issued by the Registrar   CHAMBER JUDGMENTS CONCERNING DENMARK, GREECE, SWITZERLAND AND SLOVAKIA     The European Court of Human Rights has today notified in writing chamber judgments in the following cases:   1) Skoubo v. Denmark (application no. 39581/98)     Friendly settlement   Egon Verner Skoubo, a Danish national, complained under Article 6 § 1 (right to have civil rights determined within a reasonable time) of the European Convention on Human Rights, about the length of proceedings concerning his claim for damages for an alleged medical error by a hospital. The proceedings lasted more than eleven years. The European Court of Human Rights has agreed to strike out the case following a friendly settlement in which the applicant is to be paid 20,000 Danish kroner and “reasonable” expenses. The judgment exists only in English.   2) Tsingour v. Greece[1]1 (no. 40437/98)              Violation Article 6 § 1   Djahit Tsingour, a Greek national of Turkish origin, is a chemist. He complained under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention about the length of the proceedings to which he was a party before the Conseil d’Etat (which lasted more than four years and six months) arising out of the Xanthi Pharmaceutical Association’s refusal to accept him as a member. The Court held unanimously that there had been a violation of Article 6 § 1 and awarded him 3,000,000 drachmas (GRD) for pecuniary damage, GRD 1,000,000 for non-pecuniary damage and GRD 1,000,000 for costs and expenses. (Judgment in French)   3) Tatete v. Switzerland (no. 41874/98)        Friendly settlement   Marie-Claire Tatete, a national of the Republic of the Congo, born in Kinshasa in 1964, arrived illegally in Switzerland on 17 February 1997 and requested asylum, which was refused. Later in 1997 Ms Tatete spent a number of weeks in hospital where she was certified as having contracted Aids and to be suffering from hepatitis B and tuberculosis. She asked for her application to be re-examined, given the advanced state of her illness and the limited hospital facilities in Kinshasa, claiming that to send her back would violate her right to life, protected by Article 2 of the Convention, and her right not to be subjected to degrading treatment, guaranteed by Article 3. The European Court of Human Rights has agreed to strike out the case following a friendly settlement in which she is to be paid 6,000 Swiss francs. (Judgment in French)   4) Degro v. Slovakia (no. 43737/98)        Friendly settlement   František Degro, a Slovak national, complained under Article 6 § 1 about the length of civil proceedings (four years and three months) to which he was a party before Prešov District Court concerning the validity of two sales contracts. The European Court of Human Rights has agreed to strike out the case following a friendly settlement in which he is to be paid 100,000 Slovak korunas for any damage and costs. The judgment exists only in English.   ***   Registry of the European Court of Human Rights F - 67075 Strasbourg Cedex Contacts: Roderick Liddell (telephone: (0)3 88 41 24 92) Or:   Emma Hellyer (telephone: (0)3 90 21 42 15) Fax:   (0)3 88 41 27 91   The European Court of Human Rights was set up in 1959 in Strasbourg to deal with alleged violations of the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights.  On 1 November 1998 a full-time Court was established, replacing the original two-tier system of a part-time   Under Article 43 of the European Convention on Human Rights, within three months from the date of a Chamber judgment, any party to the case may, in exceptional cases, request that the case be referred to the 17-member Grand Chamber of the Court.  In that event, a panel of five judges considers whether the case raises a serious question affecting the interpretation or application of the Convention or its Protocols, or a serious issue of general importance, in which case the Grand Chamber will deliver a final judgment. If no such question or issue arises, the panel will reject the request, at which point the judgment becomes final. Otherwise Chamber judgments become final on the expiry of the three-month period or earlier if the parties declare that they do not intend to make a request to refer.