Administrative offences and fines

In the Romanian legal system, the general rules of civil procedure apply to administrative-offence proceedings, in addition to the special rules; the legislator chose to treat administrative offences (contravenții) as civil in nature.

Romanian rules on administrative-offence proceedings are considered deficient in light of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, which treats such matters as criminal for the purposes of the Convention and requires corresponding procedural guarantees; Romania has been found in breach several times precisely because the procedure is modelled on civil procedure, both in its legal nature and in its effects.

The fine report (proces-verbal de contravenție) is an administrative act that enjoys a rebuttable presumption of lawfulness and truth, as it comes from a representative of an administrative authority vested with state power to find and sanction conduct contrary to public order under a special procedure. Its evidential value can be overturned by the person challenging it, through a complaint to court, by producing evidence that the statements in the report do not reflect reality.

In deciding these complaints, the courts must observe proportionality between the aim pursued by the authorities in imposing a sanction — individualised according to the circumstances in which the offence was committed, its purpose, method and means, its consequences and the offender’s guilt — and the sanctioned person’s right of defence.