ArmInfo.Human rights defender Arman Tatoyan considers it problematic to increase the state fee from 2 to 10 times for citizens in case of applying to the court.
In his opinion, such changes may lead to unjustified restrictions on the availability of courts, thereby creating obstacles in terms of protecting the violated rights of citizens.
This is stated in the official statement of the Ombudsman. In particular, according to the new draft law, it is proposed to raise the minimum threshold of state duty from 1.5 thousand drams to 6 thousand drams, in the case of claims - from 4 thousand drams. AMD up to 20 thousand. for appeals - from 10 thousand to 30 thousand drams, in the case of cassation complaints - from 20 thousand to 40 thousand drams, for appeals on the issue of declaring a legal entity bankrupt - from 500 thousand to 1 million drams, etc.. In addition, the bill excludes certain benefits from state duties.
The justification of the law states that over the past two years, the expenses of the justice sector have exceeded 4 times the amount of state duties. Meanwhile, in 2018, certain mechanisms were introduced to significantly reduce the costs of the judicial system. Such explanations cause contradictions, since funds are allocated annually from the state budget to the Judicial Department of the Republic of Armenia for the implementation of expenses.
According to the Ombudsman, the project deprives non-profit organizations and individuals of existing benefits through state duties. In this regard, the Human Rights Defender suggests reviewing the state duty rate and reducing it, as well as maintaining the existing benefits for paying state duties.