On May 20 the court of general jurisdiction of Kentron and Nork-Marash administrative districts of Yerevan started a new consideration of the suit of the spouse and the son of the Second President of Armenia Robert Kocharian, Bella and Sedrak Kocharians, versus “Skizb Media Kentron” LLC, founder and publisher of “Zhamanak” daily. As it has been reported, the reason of the suit became the pieces published in “Zhamanak” on September 25, September 29 and October 7, 2010. The articles dealt with a number of companies, which were reportedly owned by the Kocharians’ family or managed through the third parties. The plaintiffs filed the court, demanding to bind “Zhamanak” to refute the information damaging the honor, dignity and business reputation of Bella and Sedrak Kocharians, exact 3 million AMD (about $ 8,200) from the defendant as compensation for libel and defamation, as well as pay off the court expenses of 3 million AMD. The court hearing started on February 25 and ended on April 20, 2011. The court decision was to be announced on May 5. Meanwhile, this did not happen on the appointed date: the court resolved to start a new consideration of the case due to the necessity of additional examination of presented facts (see YPC Weekly Newsletter, April 29 – May 5, 2011).
At the session of May 20 the plaintiffs presented the court a document, grounding their expenses made for attorney fees.
The next session of May 23 was held in a blitz mode – less than a minute. According to the attorney of “Zhamanak” founder Nikolay Baghdasarian, the judge had started the hearings earlier of the time convened and ended them pleading on the absence of the respondent, announcing in the meantime that the decision on the case will be released on June 6. Meanwhile, as the attorney assures, he had arrived to court beforehand and was waiting for the time of the session to come – to enter the courtroom. Nikolay Baghdasarian informed YPC that on that day, on May 23, he had made a written petition for continuing the hearings on the suit in order to provide the respondent with possibility of addressing the RA Constitutional Court on the conformity of Article 1087.1 of RA Civil Code (“Order and Conditions of Compensation of Damage to the Honor, Dignity or Business Reputation”) to the Main Law.
