Transition of Escheated Property into State Ownership: European Justice and Russian Practice

Abstract

The article discusses the relationship between the legal categories of «demanding housing from someone else’s illegal possession», «transfer of property into state ownership by inheritance under the law», «European justice». The problem of the possible loss by the state of the right of ownership to escheat property is considered. The research methodology is based on determining the causes of this problem – the low level of interaction between state bodies, the problem of officials' responsibility for improper performance of official duties, long delays in registering the Moscow city title to residential premises related to escheated property. The decisions of the European Court of Human Rights on the complaints of Russian citizens are analyzed, in respect of which decisions were made to evict the premises, in cases where the premises were unlawfully dropped out of the city’s property. Scientific novelty is determined by the conclusions reached by the authors of the study, as well as by proposals made on possible ways to resolve the problems identified.