Facts
P. passed away in 1984 and left his wife and two sons as his legal heirs. After his death, there were indications that he had evaded taxes. The cantonal tax authority thereupon assessed the direct federal tax evaded by the deceased as well as a fine and declared the heirs liable for it. The heirs filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights, as a fine had been imposed on them without personal fault, which violated the presumption of innocence under Article 6(2) ECHR. The Court upheld the complaint and found a violation of the Convention. Thereupon, the heirs applied for a revision of the Federal Court judgment of 5 July 1991.Considerations
The Federal Court granted the application for revision, as Article 139a of the Federal Act on the Organisation of Federal Judicial Authorities (FJA) is also applicable if the contested decision was issued before the entry into force of this provision, but the deadline for appeal expires only thereafter. The revision under Article 139a FJA serves to ensure that Switzerland fulfils its obligations under international law arising from the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Federal Court set aside its previous judgment, as the European Court of Human Rights had found that the liability of the heirs for the tax fine incurred by the deceased was in violation of the Convention. This finding is limited to the specific case at hand, but the judgment was directly determined by Article 130(1) of the Federal Council Decree on the Levying of…