Glossary

• Missing claimants
  Approximately 1,000 claimants have changed addresses or contact numbers without notifying the HPD thus rendering any attempts to contact them unsuccessful – thus know as “missing claimants”. For this reason there are claims that cannot be processed because the claimant is not available to provide the Directorate with the necessary information, and decisions that cannot be implemented because notifying the claimant of a successful decision in his/her case is not possible. To try to remedy this situation, the HPD regularly distributes a list of missing claimants – via the Pristina and Belgrade media and on its internet site at www.hpdkosovo.org. It also forwards such lists to NGOs and IGOs working with Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) – with the claim numbers of those of whom it has not been possible to contact. If you have reasons to believe that your contact information is not updated please use HPD’s Call Centre’s Hot Line on + 381 (0) 38 249 936, or any of the phone numbers and faxes available in the “HPD Offices and Staff” page at http://www.hpdkosovo.org/contactus.htm. Alternatively, you can email the HPD at the following email address: administrator@hpdkosovo.org
  
  
• Occupancy right
  This is the right to use a socially owned apartment – in order to prove an occupancy right a person must be able to demonstrate compliance with the provisions of the Law on Housing Relations (Official Gazette of the SAP Kosovo, No. 11/83, 29/86, 42/86), in that s/he must prove that they have:
  • an allocation decision in his/her favour evidencing the fact that the property was allocated to him/her by the Allocation Right Holder;
  • concluded a contract on use or a contract on lease with the Public Housing Enterprise
  • entered into lawful possession of the said property, see section 11 of the Law on Housing Relations, cited above.
  An occupancy right cannot be acquired over an apartment designated for use for official purposes (‘service apartments’) or apartments used as temporary accommodation, or leases of socially owned apartments, see section 1 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60.
  
  
• Parties to a claim
  The parties to a claim are the claimant, the current occupant of the claimed property and any other natural person with a legal interest in the said property who informs the HPD of their intention to participate in the proceedings within 30 days of being notified of the claim by the HPD, see sections 9.1 and 9.2 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60. A person with a legal interest in the claim, who did not receive notification of a claim, may be admitted as a party at any point in the proceedings, provided the claim has not been finally adjudicated. After receipt of a claim, the HPD is required to notify the current occupant of the claimed property if any, and shall make reasonable efforts to notify other persons with a legal interest in the property. In appropriate cases, such reasonable efforts shall take the form of an announcement in an official publication of the Directorate. Where a current occupant or interested party indicates their intention to participate in the proceedings, they are required to notify the HPD of an address for the delivery of documents. The HPD is required to deliver copies of the Claim Form to each party. Within 30 days of receiving a copy of the Claim Form, the receiving party may respond to the claim and the HPD is then required to deliver copies of the reply to the claim to the other parties. In appropriate cases, the Directorate may provide the parties with summaries in the language of their choice of any document presented by another party. Any party may respond to any matter raised in the reply to the claim within 30 days, see further section 9 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60. Claimants generally are considered under the heading “Claimants” above.
  
  
• Post-decision options for successful claimants
  Discussed under the heading “Implementation” above.
  
  
• Prima facie Evidence
  Evidence that is sufficient to raise a presumption of fact or to establish the fact in question unless rebutted.
  
  
• Residential Property
  Real property which at 24 March 1999 was used as a residence. It may be a house or an apartment, any socially owned apartment, and any associated property, see section 1 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60. Associated property is described under the heading “associated property” above.
  
  
• Property right
  Any right of ownership of, lawful possession of, right of use of or occupancy right over a residential property, see section 1 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60.
  
  
• Provisional measures
  Upon the recommendation of the HPD, whether at the request of the claimant or otherwise, the HPCC may issue what are known as provisional measures of protection where it appears likely that, if such a course of action is not taken, a party would suffer harm, which cannot subsequently be remedied. In exceptional circumstances, on the recommendation of the responsible law enforcement agencies and where necessary to control a continuing threat to public security, provisional measures may include the eviction of the current occupant of the claimed property. This may only occur where the HPCC is satisfied that there is evidence of prior uncontested occupation of the property by the claimant. An eviction order issued under in these circumstances may be executed by the responsible law enforcement authorities without notice, see section 24 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60.
  
  
• Reconsideration Request
  Any party to a claim may submit to the HPD a request to the HPCC for the reconsideration of a decision of the HPCC within 30 days of being notified of that decision (see section 14 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60) provided they are in a position to:
  (a) present legally relevant evidence, which was not considered by the Commission in deciding the claim; or
  (b) plead that there was a material error in the application of the law as set down in UNMIK Regulation 2000/60.
  As to the timelines for filing a Reconsideration Request same is considered above under the heading “deadlines/limitation periods”. It should be noted that the execution of a pending eviction order shall be stayed from the time of lodging a reconsideration request until the HPCC has decided on the reconsideration request, unless the HPCC decides otherwise, see section 14.3 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60. As to decisions on reconsideration requests, see section 25 of UNMIK Regulation 2000/60.
  
  

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