Chapter IV: The decision of the Court of Revision and Reconsideration

The panel of the Court of Revision and Review rejects the application if it considers it to be unfounded. If it considers the application to be well-founded, it shall set aside the conviction handed down, except where an application for reconsideration of the convicted person's appeal is granted.

If it is possible to hold new adversarial hearings, the panel of the Court of Revision and Reconsideration will refer the applicant to a court of the same level and grade, but other than the court that issued the annulled decision. However, in the event of an application for reconsideration and if the reconsideration of the convicted person's appeal, under conditions that comply with the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, is likely to remedy the violation found by the European Court of Human Rights, it will refer the applicant to the plenary session of the Court of Cassation.

If it is impossible to proceed with new hearings, in particular in the event of amnesty, death, in absentia or default of one or more convicted persons, lack of criminal responsibility, or where the action or sentence is time-barred, the bench of the Court of Revision and Reconsideration, after having expressly noted this, shall rule on the merits in the presence of the civil parties, if there were any at the trial, and the trustees appointed by it in memory of each of the dead; in this case, it will only set aside those convictions that it deems to be unjustified and, if applicable, discharge the memory of the deceased.

If the impossibility of proceeding with new hearings only becomes apparent after the judgment of the Court of Revision and Reconsideration setting aside the judgment or sentence of conviction and ordering the transfer, the Court, at the request of the Public Prosecutor, shall revoke the designation made by it of the transferring court and shall rule as provided for in the third paragraph.

If the annulment of the decision in respect of a convicted person who is still alive does not leave any charge against him or her that could be criminally qualified, no transfer shall be ordered.

The annulment of the conviction results in the deletion of the record from the criminal record. The Court of Revision and Reconsideration may also order the deletion of entries from the criminal records, the automated fingerprint database, the automated national DNA database and the automated national judicial database for perpetrators of sexual or violent offences if, in view of the purpose of these databases, it no longer appears necessary to keep this data. In the case provided for in the penultimate paragraph, the deletion of these entries must be ordered.