Facts
The plaintiffs, heirs of the deceased [C.A.] , brought an action against the Swiss Confederation with the request to compensate them for unjustly levied additional taxes and default interest as well as for court, consulting and legal representation costs. The deceased had invested a total of CHF 370,000.-- in assets with [X. GmbH] in 2002 and 2003, which later turned out to be a fraudulent investment system with a snowball character. The plaintiffs claimed that the Federal Supreme Court had unjustly confirmed the legality of the additional taxes and default interest in its judgment 2C_342/2016 of December 23, 2016.
The plaintiffs requested that the Swiss Confederation compensate them for a total damage of CHF 111,882.20, which consisted of additional taxes (including default interest) of CHF 37,207.20, court fees of CHF 4,875.-- and consulting and legal representation costs of CHF 69,800.--.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court examined the complaint and came to the conclusion that the legality of the judgment 2C_342/2016 of December 23, 2016 cannot be reviewed in a liability proceeding, as it is a formally binding judgment. The court relied on Art. 12 GLA, which states that the legality of formally binding decisions, rulings and judgments cannot be reviewed in a liability proceeding.
The court also pointed out that the principle of single legal protection applies, according to which a party that has unsuccessfully challenged a decision up to the highest instance cannot again dispute the legality of this decision in a liability lawsuit. Since the plaintiffs had already challenged the tax office's…