The European Court of Human Rights has ruled in favor of former Albanian prosecutor Adnand Kosova, finding that his dismissal during the country’s judicial vetting process was disproportionate and that Albania violated his rights under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Kosova, who was dismissed in 2020 following the vetting process, had served as a prosecutor since 1986 and had worked at Albania’s General Prosecutor’s Office in Tirana since 1998.

His case before the Strasbourg court concerned the transitional re-evaluation process, which was introduced as part of Albania’s judicial reform.

Kosova was initially confirmed in office by the Independent Qualification Commission on December 20, 2018, following an assessment of the three vetting criteria. The commission found that he had consistently declared his assets and had provided a convincing explanation for their lawful origin.

The decision was appealed by the Public Commissioner. On March 13, 2020, the Special Appeal Chamber overturned the decision by a 3-2 majority and dismissed Kosova from office on grounds related to the asset criterion.

At the center of the case was money Kosova said he had received from the sale of an apartment in Korçë. The proceeds were subsequently used to purchase the family’s apartment in Tirana.

The 2002 sales contract listed the value of the Korçë apartment at 1 million Albanian lek. Kosova, however, maintained that the actual sale price was 2.5 million lek, arguing that the remaining 1.5 million lek had been received earlier as a deposit.

In examining the case, the European Court of Human Rights found that the Special Appeal Chamber had adopted an overly formal approach by treating the sales contract as the only reliable evidence.

The Strasbourg court noted that the domestic authorities had not sufficiently taken into account the fact that, under Albanian law, an agreement concerning a deposit did not necessarily have to be made in writing. It also pointed to information concerning property market prices in Korçë at the time.

The court further noted that the facts in question dated back approximately 20 years, to a period before the adoption of Albania’s 2003 law on asset declarations. This, it said, created additional difficulties in reconstructing the documentary evidence.

The European Court concluded that the Albanian authorities had failed to provide “relevant and sufficient” reasons to justify the interference with Kosova’s right to respect for his private life.

It found that his dismissal was disproportionate to the legitimate aims pursued by the vetting process, and therefore constituted a violation of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The court also said that, if Kosova requests it, reopening the vetting proceedings and reconsidering his case in accordance with the requirements of Article 8 would be an appropriate way of addressing the violation.

Albania was ordered to pay Kosova €6,000 in non-pecuniary damages and €5,000 in costs and expenses related to the proceedings.