Cypriot pilot who ditched lawyer goes after state

A Cypriot commercial pilot who single-handedly took his case to ECHR saying he was wrongfully dismissed more than two decades ago is now suing the Republic of Cyprus for unfair trial following a decision by the country’s Supreme Court to reopen appeal proceedings.

British-Cypriot Charalambos Nicholas, who was dismissed as a trainee pilot in 1998 by now-defunct Cyprus Airways, claimed he was wrongfully dismissed by the company, with a district court in Nicosia rejecting his claims for damages in 2006 and then he went on to lose his appeal in 2010.

But after the judgment of the Supreme Court in 2010, Nicholas discovered that the son of one of the judges sitting on the bench was married to the daughter of one of the lawyers representing the company.

The attorney representing Nicholas in the domestic proceedings had not requested the exemption of the judge in question, with reports saying the lawyer did not have sufficient knowledge of the fact at the time because the plaintiff did not make such a request.

Nicholas, who ditched his attorney and legally represented himself in subsequent hearings, went on to win his case before the European Court of Human Rights.

Last week a Supreme Court bench in a two to one decision moved to reopen proceedings in the appeal case, with local media saying Nicholas was prepared to sue the Republic of Cyprus for lack of impartiality since as the airline company went bankrupt in 2015.