90
and also requested that the Court establish an amount for any future expenditure
relating to the processing of the case.
297. Regarding reimbursement of costs and expenses, the Court must prudently
assess their scope. They include the expenses incurred before the authorities of the
domestic jurisdiction, as well as those incurred during the proceedings before the
Inter-American system, taking into account the circumstances of the specific case
and the nature of the international jurisdiction for the protection of human rights.
This assessment can be made based on the principle of equity and taking into
account the expenses indicated by the parties, provided that the quantum is
reasonable.270
298. The Court has indicated that “the claims of the victims or their
representatives concerning costs and expenses, and the evidence to support them,
must be submitted to the Court at the first procedural occasion granted to them,
namely, in the brief of pleadings and motions; notwithstanding the possibility that
these claims may be updated subsequently, in keeping with the new costs and
expenses that may have been incurred as a result of the proceedings before this
Court.”271 Furthermore, the Court reiterates that it is not sufficient that the parties
merely submit probative documents; rather they are required to submit arguments
that connect the evidence to the fact that it is supposed to represent and, in the
case of alleged financial disbursements, the items and their justification must be
clearly explained.”272 With their final arguments, the representatives included
additional expenses presumably incurred by Tlachinollan prior to the presentation
of the application that were not included in the brief on pleadings and motions.
However, the representatives indicated that this omission was an “involuntary
error.” Also in their final written arguments, the representatives included other
expenses that one of said organizations had incurred in 2009, prior to the
presentation of the brief of pleadings and motions that were not indicated at the
appropriate time. Due to the time-barred presentation, the Court will not consider
said expenses when determining the quantity set for costs and expenses. Lastly,
the Court notes that a large number of expenses noted by the representatives are
not accompanied by appropriate documentation, or that from the receipts, there is
not a clear nexus regarding the relation to the present case.
299. Notwithstanding the aforementioned, the Court determines that the
representatives incurred various expenses before the Court in relation to fees,
evidence collection, transportation costs, communication services, among others, in
the processing at the domestic and international forums of the present case. Taking
into account the abovementioned, the Court determines, in equity, that the State
must provide the amount of US$ 14,000.00 (fourteen thousand dollars of the
United Stats of America), US$ 10,000.00 (ten thousand dollars of the United States
of America), and y US$ 1,000.00 (one thousand dollars of the United States of
America) in favor of CEJIL, of Tlachinollan, and of Mrs. Fernández Ortega,
respectively, for costs and expenses incurred. In the monitoring of compliance
procedures of the present Judgment, the Court may provide the reimbursement on
behalf of the State to the victims or their representatives for reasonable expenses
that have been duly proven.
270
Cf. Case of Garrido and Baigorria, supra note 204, para. 82; Case of Chitay Nech et al., supra
note 18, para. 285, and Case of Manuel Cepeda Vargas, supra note 18, para. 258.
271
Cf. Case of Chaparro Álvarez and Lapo Íñiguez. v. Ecuador. Preliminary Objections, Merits,
Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of November 21, 2007. Series C No. 170, para. 275; Case of the Dos
Erres Massacre, supra note 20, para. 302, and Case of Chitay Nech et al., supra note 18, para. 284.
272
Cf. Case of Chaparro Álvarez and Lapo Iñiguez, supra note 271, para. 277; Case of the Dos
Erres Massacre, supra note 20, para. 301, and Case of Chitay Nech et al., supra note 18, para. 284.
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