Case 2003-165f

The French-speaking Community of Belgium’s Decree of February 27, 2003 added a special certification requirement for enrollment in postgraduate healthcare studies beyond the previous requirement that students have a doctor of medicine degree. A transitional measure was planned to grant the special certificates. Petitioners were medical students who challenged the special certificate requirement because they could not obtain a special certificate under the new rules and would thus no longer be able to enroll in postgraduate healthcare courses.

Petitioners contended that the decree violated Articles 10, 11, and 24 § 4, of the Constitution and asked the Court to suspend portions of the decree.

The Court declined to suspend the special certification requirements, holding that the petitioners’ that their application for suspension was inadmissible because they had failed to file it within the three-month window required by Belgian law. The Court did not analyze the substantive issues presented in the case.

“Les requérants demandent la suspension des articles 3, 4, 9 et 10, alinéa 1er, du décret de la Communauté française du 27 février 2003 « Décret modifiant les dispositionsr elatives aux études du secteur des sciences de la santé dans le décret du 5 septembre 1994relatif au régime des etudes universitaires et des grades académiques et dans la loi du 27juillet 1971 sur le financement et le contrôle des institutions universitaires ». Ce décret a étépublié au Moniteur belge du 11 avril 2003 (2ème édition), soit le même jour que celui de la publication de la loi spéciale du 9 mars 2003. Les requérants étaient donc avertis que, en vertu de la loi spéciale du 9 mars 2003, une demande de suspension du décret attaqué n’était recevable, à partir du 21 avril 2003, qu’à condition d’être introduite dans les trois mois de sa publication.” Para. B 2.2.

“Petitioners request the suspension of Articles 3, 4, 9, and 10, paragraph 1, of the French Community’s Decree of February 27, 2003 “Decree amending the provisions on health studies in the Decree of September 5, 1994 on the system of university education and academic degrees, and in the Decree of July 27, 1971 on the financing and control of university institutions.” This Decree was published in the Belgian Official Journal on April 11, 2003 (second edition), the same day as the publication of the special law of March 9, 2003. The petitioners were therefore unaware that under the special law of March 9, 2003, a request for suspension of the contested decree was only admissible, starting April 21, 2003, if it was submitted within three months of the decree’s publication.” Para. B 2.2.