In November 2005, the Zagreb Municipal Court sentenced Matvejevic to five months in prison with a two-year probation after Pesorda sued him for defamation in a newspaper article entitled "Our Taliban", which appeared in Jutarnji List daily four years before.
The verdict, which became final in December 2005, elicited strong criticism from the public and condemnation from many organisations, including the Croatian Journalists' Association and the Reporters Without Borders as well as high-ranking politicians and other public figures in the country.
The Office of the State Prosecutor believes that in the disputed article Matvejevic did not intend to harm Pesorda's reputation.
The request of this kind by the Office of the Chief State Prosecutor can be lodged as an extraordinary legal remedy which the Chief State Prosecutor files requesting the Supreme Court to assess whether a final ruling is in contravention with some law and whether that ruling breaches fundamental human rights and freedom stemming from the Constitution, law and international law.
If the Supreme Court establishes that there are grounds for the request for the assessment of the legality of the ruling, it can change or quash the disputed ruling in its entirety and refer the case back to the competent court to reconsider the matter.