Dreptul de Acces la Justiţie din Perspectiva Actualului Sistem de Taxe Judiciare de Timbru în Materie Succesorală (The Right to Access to Justice in the Present System of Court Fees in Cases Regarding the Inheritance)

Abstract

Fundamental guarantee for the effective exercise of rights and freedoms of individuals, and an instrument for the rule of law, the right to a court is a sine qua non condition for the organization and functioning of a democratic judicial system.Taking into account Romania's multiple convictions to the ECHR regarding the right of access to court in terms of stamp duty, the topic which I have chosen for this juridical study is likely to seem antiquated, at first sight.Nevertheless, relatively recent amendments to Law No. 146/1997 on stamp duty are meant to recall into question the issue of the right to a court.Thus, in present, an inheritance action lodged before the court shall be subjected to the following taxes: 50 lei for establishing the inheritor quality, 3% of the inheritance value for establishing the inheritance estate and 3% of the inheritance value for dividing the inheritance, according to art. 3 point c of Law No. 146/1997.Moreover, the same duty taxes are required for issuing a certified copy of a judgment rendered in an inheritance action. Taking into consideration the present stamp duty system concerning inheritance actions, I consider that the Romanian Government infringed the right to a court, right enshrined in art. 6 § 1 of the Convention and in art. 21 of the Romanian Constitution, failing to strike a fair balance between the means employed and the aim pursued.