SILVER AND OTHERS v. THE UNITED KINGDOM JUGDMENT
2
3. The Chamber of seven judges to be constituted included, as ex officio
members, Sir Vincent Evans, the elected judge of British nationality (Article
43 of the Convention) (art. 43), and Mr. G. Wiarda, the President of the
Court (Rule 21 § 3 (b) of the Rules of Court). On 25 April 1981, the
President drew by lot, in the presence of the Registrar, the names of the five
other members, namely Mrs. D. Bindschedler-Robert, Mr. F. Matscher, Mr.
L.-E. Pettiti, Mr. C. Russo and Mr. R. Bernhardt (Article 43 in fine of the
Convention and Rule 21 § 4) (art. 43).
Subsequently, Mr. F. Gölcüklü and Mr. Thór Vilhjálmsson, substitute
judges, took the respective places of Mrs. Bindschedler-Robert, whom the
President had exempted from sitting on the case, and Mr. Bernhardt, who
was prevented from taking part in the further consideration of the case
(Rules 22 § 1 and 24 §§ 1 and 4).
4. Mr. Wiarda, who had assumed the office of President of the Chamber
(Rule 21 § 5), ascertained, through the Registrar, the views of the Agent of
the Government of the United Kingdom ("the Government") and the
Delegates of the Commission regarding the procedure to be followed. He
decided on 4 May that the Agent should have until 4 September 1981 to file
a memorial and that the Delegates should be entitled to file a memorial in
reply within two months from the date of the transmission of the
Government’s memorial to them by the Registrar. The President agreed on
13 August to extend the first of these time-limits until 2 October 1981.
The Government’s memorial was received at the registry on 2 October
1981. On 4 December, the Secretary to the Commission, who had informed
the Registrar on 14 October that the Delegates did not themselves wish to
reply in writing, transmitted to the Court observations on the memorial,
which had been submitted to the Delegates by the applicants’ lawyers.
5. The Court held a preparatory meeting on 27 January 1982 when it
formulated certain proposals with a view to the limitation of the scope of the
hearings to be held before it. On the same occasion, the Court drew up a list
of questions and requests which were communicated by the Registrar on 10
February to the Government and the Commission; replies thereto were
received from the Government on 14 June and, as regards one question,
from the Commission on 6 August.
6. After consulting, through the Registrar, the Agent of the Government
and the Delegates of the Commission, the President directed, on 17 May,
that the hearings should open on 22 September 1982 and, on 22 July that
their scope should be limited in the manner set out in his Order of the lastmentioned date.
7. The hearings were held in public at the Human Rights Building,
Strasbourg, on 22 September 1982.
There appeared before the Court:
- for the Government:
Mrs. A. GLOVER, Legal Adviser,