with Law No. 243/1992 in respect of property taken whether before or after 25 February 1948, if they can demonstrate their loyalty to the Czech Republic and their innocence of any wrong-doing against the Czechoslovak State, whereas the author is denied this opportunity, because according to the post-1991 judgements, the expropriation under the Benes’ Decrees was superseded by the enactment of Law No. 143/1947. regime and that it was logically limited by the date when the communists took power, and that it is an ex gratia act which never intended to provide for global reparation. 4.2 According to the State party, the communication is manifestly ill-founded since it is clear from the text of Law No. 143/1947 that the property in question devolved from Dr. Adolf Schwarzenberg to the State by virtue of this Act, before the qualifying date of 25 February 1948 contained in Law No. 229/1991. The State party explains that intabulation was only required for property changes by way of transfer (requiring the consent of the former owner) and not for property changes by way of devolution (not requiring the owner’s consent). 3.6 It is submitted that the author’s denial of and exclusion from an effective remedy for the arbitrary, illegal, unfair and discriminatory taking of her property under the Benes’ Decrees and under Law No.143/1947, constitutes continuing, arbitrary, unfair and unconstitutional discriminatory treatment of the author by the public authorities of the Czech Republic - legislative, executive, and judicial which is contrary to the obligations of the Czech Republic under articles 2 and 26 of the Covenant. In this connection, the author states that the Human Rights Committee’s considerations in the Simunek8 case are directly relevant to her complaint. In the latter cases intabulation is but a formality, serving to safeguard the ownership of the State against third persons. Also, Law No. 243/1992 does not apply to the author’s case, since it is explicitly limited to expropriations carried out under the Benes’ Decrees. 3.7 As regards her claim under article 14, paragraph 1, of the Covenant, the author states that she has been denied the right to equality before the Czech Courts and to a fair hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, including effective access thereto. In this context, she refers to the manner in which the Courts rejected her claim, to more favourable jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court in comparable cases, and to the Constitutional Court’s refusal to decide on the constitutionality of Law No. 143/1947. 4.3 The State party argues that the Committee is incompetent ratione temporis to examine the author’s claim that Law No. 143/1947 was unlawful or discriminatory. The State party acknowledges that the Committee would be competent ratione temporis to assess cases covered by either Law No. 229/1991 or 243/1992, including cases which originated in the period preceding the date of entry into force of the Covenant for the Czech Republic. However, since neither Law applies to the author’s case, the sphere of legal relations established by Law No. 143/1947 is ratione temporis outside the scope of the Covenant. 3.8 In this context, the author points out that it was inherently contradictory to logic and common sense for the Constitutional Court to have confirmed the legal effects of Law No. 143/1947 while at the same time declaring the question of the constitutional validity of the Law to be irrelevant to the determination of the author’s rights. The Court’s decision was moreover inconsistent with its own jurisprudence and constitutional functions in annulling discriminatory legislation. 4.4 Finally, the State party argues that the communication to the Committee is wider in scope than the author’s complaint to the Constitutional Court and is therefore inadmissible for non-exhaustion of domestic remedies. In this connection, the State party submits that 27 complaints presented by the author are still pending before the Constitutional Court. State party’s admissibility submission and author’s comments 5.1 In her comments to the State party’s submission, the author does not challenge the State party’s explanation that the legislation never intended to provide global reparation, but submits that the complaint in the present case concerns the way this legislation has been applied to the author’s case, resulting in discriminatory denial and exclusion from an effective remedy of restitution or compensation for the unlawful taking of her family’s property, in violation of her right to equality before the law and equal protection by the law. The complaint also concerns the denial of her right to equality before the Czech courts and of a fair hearing. 4.1 By submission of 4 December 1997, the State party argues that the communication is inadmissible ratione temporis, as manifestly ill-founded, and for failure to exhaust domestic remedies. In explaining the background of the restitution legislation, the State party emphasizes that it was designed to deal with the after-effects of the totalitarian communist 8 Simunek et al. v. Czech Republic, Case No. 516/1992. Views adopted on 17 July 1995. 54