The Supreme Court od the Republic of Slovenia has assessed the appropriate amount of compensation based on the criteria from the third paragraph of Article 16 in conjunction with the provisions of Article 4 of the Law on Compensation for Proceedings Without Undue Delay (ZVPSBNO). In its assessment, special weight was given to the circumstances enshrined in Article 4 of the ZVPSBNO, which state that the plaintiff did not act unlawfully by not paying the monetary amount and legitimately initiated proceedings by filing a lawsuit regarding the validity of the enforcement order. With the mentioned judgment, his claim for a declaration that the loan agreement with the enforcement clause was not valid in relation to him as the borrower was conclusively granted. Furthermore, he did not contribute to the prolongation of the said procedure, which lasted slightly more than six years, with courts deciding five times at various stages. All of this undoubtedly caused him mental suffering, manifested in the uncertainty regarding the outcome of the process, which eventually culminated in the enforcement process with the loss of his highly significant asset - the family house, despite not being obligated to repay the loan amount. These are undoubtedly very demanding and exceptionally severe circumstances that, within the legally permissible range, require an increase in the awarded compensation beyond what was conclusively granted.

Ruling:

The revision is partially granted, and the judgments of the first and second-instance courts are amended so that the defendant must pay the plaintiff compensation for non-pecuniary damages due to the violation of the right to a trial without undue delay in the amount of EUR 3,500, plus statutory default interest from March 8, 2006, until payment, within 15 days, under enforcement. The higher claim from this title is rejected.

The defendant is obliged to reimburse the plaintiff for the procedural costs related to the appeal in the amount of EUR 186.66, within 15 days from the due date, plus statutory default interest under enforcement.

II. Otherwise, the revision is denied.

III. The defendant is obliged to pay the plaintiff the costs of the revision proceedings in the amount of EUR 223.98, within 15 days from the due date, plus statutory default interest under enforcement.

Explanation:

... more on the decision of the Supreme Court II Ips 63/2022, from February 22, 2023, published on the website of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Slovenia.