‘No, dear court.’ The Deputy Minister of Justice to the Prime Minister

According to the current legislation, construction can be suspended for up to 5 years based on any complaint or administrative lawsuit, and if it is later determined that the contractor was right and the complaint was baseless, who compensates for the damages of the construction owner? This was stated today, May 27, during a government meeting by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

“Let’s say a person has taken out a loan of $10 million and has begun construction. Suddenly, the owner of a nearby booth, whose annual turnover is 500,000 drams, sues, and the trial lasts for 5 years. During that time, the construction is halted, and the borrower services the loan without receiving income. In the end, the court decides that the booth owner's claim is baseless. Is anyone compensating for the damages of the person who took the $10 million loan?” Pashinyan asked.

The Deputy Minister of Justice, Rafik Grigoryan, was confused and replied, “No, Mr. Court.” This elicited laughter from everyone present. The Deputy Minister noted that no one compensates for the damages. It should be noted that the government approved a legislative proposal at today’s meeting, stipulating that regardless of the existence of a complaint, construction will not be automatically suspended, but will be suspended only in the presence of appropriate grounds.