In its ruling No. 8 Tdo 1352/2014 of February 26, 2015, the appellate body of the Supreme Court criminal division dismissed an appeal by the appellant, who has been convicted of extortion and defamation by way of a frivolous insolvency claim. The court held that the appeal was absolutely unfounded.
The court concluded that if done on the basis of knowingly false facts and outside circumstances meeting the insolvency requirements, the filing of an insolvency claim aiming to force another party to provide satisfaction which that party had no duty to provide, was unlawful and could constitute a threat of serious injury, one of the basic elements of the crime of extortion.
Given their wider social significance, the findings from this decision should serve as a guide for lower courts’ decision-making.