Facts
As of December 1, 1995, J. was granted a full simple disability pension, accompanied by a supplementary pension for his spouse E. and two pensions for their children A. and B. These benefits were replaced, as of December 1, 2000, by a simple old-age pension and two supplementary pensions for children. On October 7, 1997, E. filed a claim for disability insurance benefits. By decision of March 10, 2000, the IV office awarded her a quarter of a simple disability pension, as well as two simple supplementary pensions for children. Following successive appeals, the IV office finally awarded E. a full disability pension retroactively. Since J. had benefited for the same period from a disability pension, and then an old-age pension, the IV office offset the excess pensions paid to J. with a portion of the retroactively awarded pensions to E. E. appealed against these decisions, disputing the IV office's right to offset the pensions improperly received by J. with the pensions that had been retroactively awarded to her. The Cantonal Court dismissed the appeal.Considerations
The case law accepts that the compensation of claims in public law, particularly in social insurance law, is not subject to the strict condition of reciprocity of legal subjects set out in Art. 120 para. 1 CO. Compensation is possible when there is a close link, from the point of view of insurance technology or from a legal point of view, between the opposing claims.
In the present case, the IV office's claim for restitution against J. was inextricably linked to the retroactively awarded benefits to E. Indeed, J.'s right to the supplementary pension for a spouse was excluded as soon as E. was entitled to a disability pension.…