The Supreme Court orders new decision on the awarding of the Thirteenth of July Award

The Supreme Court of Montenegro announced that it has upheld a request for the review of a court decision in a dispute concerning the awarding of the Thirteenth of July Award, annulled the decision of the Administrative Court, and returned the case for renewed proceedings and decision-making.

The proceedings were initiated following a lawsuit filed by Dragan Hajduković from Cetinje against the decision of the Ministry of Culture and Media - the Jury for the Awarding of the Thirteenth of July Award for 2025. By that decision, the award was granted to Miloš Karadaglić, Bećir Vuković and Veljo Stanišić. Hajduković challenged the decision, claiming that all three awards were granted within a single field - culture and artistic creativity - thereby violating Article 17 of the Law on State Awards, which stipulates that only one Thirteenth of July Award may be granted in a single field.

At the end of July, the Administrative Court dismissed the lawsuit as inadmissible, stating that the decision on awarding the prize was not an administrative act deciding on a right or legal interest of the plaintiff.

Hajduković subsequently filed a request for the review of the court decision, arguing that there had been a violation of substantive law and the rules of administrative procedure.

In the reasoning of its judgment, the Supreme Court stated that the conclusion of the Administrative Court could not be considered correct. The Court recalled that the awarding of the Thirteenth of July Award is based on a public call, which constitutes a competitive procedure, a special form of a public promise of a reward. In such a procedure, participants have the right to seek annulment of the decision if the award was not granted in accordance with the rules of the competition and the law.

The Court also referred to the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, emphasizing that a single prior decision does not constitute established judicial practice, nor can it limit the authority of the Supreme Court to review and change legal positions in order to ensure uniform and correct application of the law.

Taking all of the above into account, the Supreme Court annulled the decision of the Administrative Court and returned the case for renewed proceedings. The statement was issued by the Supreme Court of Montenegro.