t reiterates that since a prosecutor or comparable officer, in undertaking the status of a procedural plaintiff, becomes in effect the ally or opponent of one of the parties, his participation was capable of creating a feeling of inequality in respect of one of the parties (see Kress, cited above, § 81, and F.W. v. France, No. 61517/00, § 27, 31 March 2005). In this context, the Court reiterates that while the independence and impartiality of the prosecutor or similar officer were not open to criticism, the public's increased sensitivity to the fair administration of justice justified the growing importance attached to appearances (see Borgers v. Belgium, 30 October 1991, § 24, Series A No. 214-B).
25. The Court considers that the fact that a similar point of view is defended before a court by several parties or even the fact that the proceedings were initiated by a prosecutor does not necessarily place the opposing party in a position of "substantial disadvantage" when presenting her case. It remains to be ascertained whether, in the instant case, in view of the prosecutor's participation in the proceedings, the "fair balance" that ought to prevail between the parties was respected.
26. The Court points out that its task is not to review the relevant domestic law and practice in abstracto, but to determine whether the manner in which they were applied to or affected the applicant gave rise to a violation of Article 6 § 1 in the present case (see, among other authorities, Padovani v. Italy, 26 February 1993, § 24, Series A No. 257-B, and Hauschildt v. Denmark, 24 May 1989, § 45, Series A No. 154). Article 6 § 1 imposes on the Contracting States the duty to organise their legal systems in such a way that their courts can meet each of the requirements of that provision (see, among other authorities, {Surmeli} v. Germany [GC], No. 75529/01, § 129, ECHR 2006-...). In order to determine whether the acts of the prosecutor's office in the present case were compatible with Article 6 § 1 of the Convention, the Court has had regard to relevant Council of Europe documents (see paragraphs 15 and 16 above).
27. It is noted that the parties to civil proceedings, the plaintiff and the respondent, should have equal procedural rights. The Court does not exclude that support by the prosecutor's office of one of the parties may be justified in certain circumstances, for instance for the protection of vulnerable persons who are assumed to be unable to protect their interests themselves, or where numerous citizens are affected by the wrongdoing concerned, or where identifiable State assets or interests need to be protected. The Court notes in that connection that the applicant's opponent in the proceedings in question was a State-owned organisation (compare Yavorivskaya v. Russia, No. 34687/02, § 25, 21 July 2005). There was also a private person who had a vested interest in the outcome of the proceedings. Although both the Oceanology Institute and Mr M were represented in the proceedings, the Court considers that the public prosecutor acted in the public interest when he brought proceedings against the applicant and her husband (compare Menchinskaya v. Russia, No. 42454/02, §§ 37 - 40, 15 January 2009). The applicant and her husband were also represented by counsel and made both written and oral submissions to the first-instance court. It was not shown that the prosecutor's decision to initiate civil proceedings had no legal basis under Russian law, or that this decision fell outside the scope of his discretion to bring proceedings on account of the particular circumstances of the case (see paragraphs 11 and 12 above). In the circumstances of the case there is no reason to believe that the institution of the civil proceedings by the public prosecutor was meant or had the effect of unduly influencing the civil court or preventing the applicant from bringing an effective defence (see, muta
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