This case was concerned with the applicant company’s property consisting out of 6 blocks of flats near the port of Rotterdam.

The smell of mineral oil was reported during digging in the property’s garden and a report later found that heavy metals caused soil pollution in the area. The local residents were informed that soil cleaning measures were necessary. Furthermore, the District Court decided that the rent of the flats would be reduced.

The applicant brought an application of the European Court of Human Rights claiming the violation of their right to a fair trial under Article 6(1). The applicant claimed that there was no effective judicial review regarding the civil court proceeding concerning the rent reduction, because the District Court considered itself bound by the Provincial's Executive’s finding which it held to imply the health and environmental risks of the soil pollution and thus denied the applicant a judicial ruling on an important part of their case.

The ECtHR held that the District Court deprived itself of the jurisdiction to examine facts that were crucial to the dispute and that therefore, article 6(1) was violated.