Kocharyan loses court case against Simonyan

The Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction of First Instance has rejected the lawsuit filed by the second president of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, against former parliament speaker Alen Simonyan.

This was reported by the law firm AM, which represents Simonyan's interests in court.

The proceedings were prompted by statements Simonyan made on May 19, 2025, during a briefing with journalists. At the time, he called Kocharyan a "murderer" and a "robber," said that "his hands are covered in blood," and also denounced the former president's attitude toward Armenia as a "place for profiteering."

Kocharyan went to court, calling these statements defamatory to his honor and dignity, and demanded their retraction and the payment of compensation.

"On August 18, 2026, the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction of First Instance issued a ruling that completely rejected the lawsuit of the second president of the Republic of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, against the former chairman of the National Assembly, Alen Simonyan, with demands to retract information defaming his honor and dignity and to pay compensation," the law firm's statement said.

As the lawyers note, the court regarded Simonyan's statements in this context as value judgments. Despite the harsh, exaggerated and provocative nature of the wording and its pronounced defamatory subtext, the court did not find in them any specific factual assertions of murder, criminal intent, or a particular form of Kocharyan's participation in a crime.

The court also concluded that the case did not present a sufficient body of evidence confirming the existence of the grounds provided for by Article 1087.1 of Armenia's Civil Code, which regulates matters of protecting honor, dignity, and business reputation.

Source: Sputnik Armenia