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Does the law foresee the shift of the burden of proof in civil / administrative procedures? Are there problems of implementation reported by independent authoritative sources?

Code:
RED13
Key Area:
Anti-discrimination Legislation & Implementation
Strand(s):
Discrimination, Equality
09/01/2012 - 16:10
Short Answer

Yes.

Qualitative Info

According to Article 9 of the Law on Protection against Discrimination, in the course of the proceedings for protection from discrimination, if the victim of discrimination proves some facts leading to a conclusion that there is discrimination, the other party has to prove that the right of equal treatment has not been violated. The Commission for Protection of Discrimination strictly applies the shift of the burden of proof and there are no reports by independent sources concerning any problems with its implementation. Some problems are reported in relation to the implementation of the shift of the burden of proof by the courts. According to the report “Case law of civil courts under the Law on Protection of Discrimination” published by the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee in 2009, the main problems with the implementation of the shift of the burden of proof are related to the scope of facts that the victim has to prove. The report lists several cases where the court has requested the victim to bring evidence for too many facts instead of proving just some of them, which would be sufficient for concluding that there is discrimination. Another problem indicated by the same report is that some courts do not apply the shift of the burden of proof when the claim has been filed not by the victim but by a non-governmental organisation.

Groups affected/interested
Type (R/D)
Key socio-economic / Institutional Areas Anti-discrimination
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