Svanidze v. Georgia

Information Note on the Court’s case-law 231July 2019Svanidze v. Georgia - 37809/08Judgment 25.7.2019 [Section V]Article 6Criminal proceedingsArticle 6-1Fair hearingConviction by substitute judge based on transcripts of oral evidence without hearing witnesses in person: violationFacts – The applicant, the head of a hospital’s gynaecological department, was convicted of failing to provide a patient with a life-threatening condition with urgent medical treatment for no good reason, which had caused the patient’s death. Following the hearing of the evidence at the applicant’s trial, a substitute judge was assigned to her case. The substitute judge dismissed the applicant’s lawyer’s request to restart the examination of the case, noting that the case material was sufficient for him to continue. The applicant’s conviction was upheld on appeal without any direct rehearing of evidence. Law – Ar …