case under conditions that do not place it at a substantial disadvantage {vis-a-vis} its opponent (see {Krcmar} and Others v. the Czech Republic, No. 35376/97, § 39, 3 March 2000, and Dombo Beheer B.V. v. the Netherlands, 27 October 1993, § 33, Series A No. 274). Article 6 of the Convention does not guarantee the right to personal presence before a civil court but rather a more general right to present one's case effectively before the court and to enjoy equality of arms with the opposing side. Article 6 § 1 leaves to the State a free choice of the means to be used in guaranteeing litigants these rights (see Steel and Morris v. the United Kingdom, No. 68416/01, §§ 59 - 60, ECHR 2005-II).
42. The Court further observes that it has previously found a violation of the right to a "public and fair hearing" in a case where a Russian court, after having refused leave to appear to the imprisoned applicants, who had wished to make oral submissions on their defamation claim, failed to consider other legal possibilities for securing their effective participation in the proceedings (see Khuzhin and Others, cited above, §§ 53 et seq.). It also found a violation of Article 6 in a case where a Russian court refused leave to appear to an imprisoned applicant who had wished to make oral submissions on his claim that he had been ill-treated by the police. Despite the fact that the applicant in that case was represented by his wife, the Court considered it relevant that his claim had been largely based on his personal experience and that his submissions would therefore have been "an important part of the plaintiff's presentation of the case and virtually the only way to ensure adversarial proceedings" (see Kovalev v. Russia, No. 78145/01, § 37, 10 May 2007).
43. The Court also notes that the Russian Code of Civil Procedure provides for the plaintiff's right to appear in person before a civil court hearing his or her claim. However, neither the Code of Civil Procedure nor the Penitentiary Code make special provision for the exercise of that right by individuals who are in custody, whether they are in pre-trial detention or are serving a sentence (see Khuzhin and Others, cited above, § 104).
44. The issue of the exercise of procedural rights by detainees in civil proceedings has been examined on several occasions by the Russian Constitutional Court, which has identified several ways in which their rights can be secured (see paragraph 23 above). It has consistently emphasised representation as an appropriate solution in cases where a party cannot appear in person before a civil court. Given the obvious difficulties involved in transporting convicted persons from one location to another, the Court can in principle accept that in cases where the claim is not based on the plaintiff's personal experiences representation of the detainee by an advocate would not be in breach of the principle of equality of arms.
45. Turning to the circumstances of the present case, the Court points out that the district court did not examine the applicant's request for leave to attend the session of 9 July 2003. It merely stated in the judgment that the applicant's absence from the courtroom could be explained by the fact of his criminal conviction (see paragraph 16 above). The Kostroma Regional Court, in turn, emphasised that the applicant had been present at the hearing of 13 June 2001 despite the court not being duty-bound to summon him (see paragraph 19 above).
46. As regards the Government's assertion that the applicant's attendance at the hearing of 13 June 2001 ensured his effective participation in the examination of the case, the Court points out that on that date the district court did not decide on the merits of the defamation claim and merely ordered that the proceedings be stayed. The next court session was held on 9 July 2003. The Court doubts that the district court
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