Page 3 of 30 Delegate and the applicants’ lawyer regarding the need for a written procedure, the President of the Court decided, on 2 July 1987, that it was not necessary for memorials to be filed (Rule 37 § 1) and directed that the oral proceedings should open on 21 September 1987 (Rule 38). 6. The hearing was held in public in the Human Rights Building, Strasbourg, on the appointed day. The Court had held a preparatory meeting immediately beforehand. There appeared before the Court: - for the Government Mr. H. CORELL, Ambassador, Under-Secretary for Legal and Consular Affairs, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Agent, Mr. K. RUNDQVIST, Under-Secretary for Legal Affairs, Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, Mr. P. BOQVIST, Legal Adviser, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Mrs. A.-M. HOLMSTEDT, Legal Adviser, Gothenburg Municipality, Advisers; - for the Commission Mrs. G.H. THUNE, Delegate; - for the applicants Mrs. S. WESTERBERG, lawyer, Counsel. The Court heard addresses by Mr. Corell for the Government, by Mrs. Thune for the Commission and by Mrs. Westerberg for the applicants, as well as their replies to the questions put by the Court and its President. 7. On 27 July 1987, the applicants had lodged their claims for just satisfaction under Article 50 (Rule 49), which they supplemented with further particulars on 19 October. Written comments on those claims were received from the Government on 7 September and 23 November 1987 and from the Commission on 15 December 1987. On 3 September and 16 November 1987, the Government, either on their own initiative or at the Court’s request, filed various documents. AS TO THE FACTS I. PARTICULAR CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE A. Background 8. The applicants, Mr. Stig and Mrs. Gun Olsson, who are husband and wife, were born in 1941 and 1944 respectively. They are Swedish citizens and live in Gothenburg in Sweden. The case concerns three children of the marriage, namely Stefan, born in June 1971, Helena, born in December 1976, and Thomas, born in January 1979 (hereinafter together referred to as "the children"). The applicants and the children belong to the Church of Sweden; the applicants’ membership is purely nominal, as they describe themselves as atheists. 9. In their youth, both Mr. and Mrs. Olsson had spent some time at Stretered, a home for the mentally retarded. However, an examination by a psychologist in 1982 revealed that they then had an average level of intelligence. Other children of theirs had been in social care and Stefan has been subject to various forms of special education since 1975, when he was registered with the Social Welfare Administration for the Handicapped by reason of his being mentally retarded. Prior to the events giving rise to the present case, a number of different social authorities had been individually involved with the family; they co-ordinated their activities from 1979 onwards. Mr. Olsson - who is in receipt of a disability pension - and Mrs. Olsson were both given certain additional social http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/viewhbkm.asp?sessionId=60525252&skin=hudoc-en&a... 10/13/2010