Expropriation from the wider perspective in the Czech Republic

Abstract

Expropriation is a legal institute, which uses the power of law to make changes in property rights. The aim of this institute is to facilitate the transition to desirable outcomes or to impose restrictions to achieve similar ends in relation to the existing property rights which would not be possible without this institute. This chapter focuses on a range of contemporary issues, problems, experiences and commentaries in the Czech Republic in the area of expropriation (including general expropriation rules, the public interest definition, determination of the purpose of expropriation according to individual laws, the time aspect of expropriation, the Material Intention of the Act on Line Transport Constructions, compensations for expropriation and tax impacts, and international arbitration with foreign investors as a result of expropriation). Including the outcome of case law improves the understanding and interpretation of the expropriation institute. At the end, the chapter offers potential solutions to the issues covered. It works with the hypothesis that the regulation de lege lata is sufficient and there is no need for amendments. To confirm or disprove this hypothesis is the main aim of the chapter. Concerning the scientific methods, description is used to introduce the legal regulation, analysis to conclude the pros and cons of the existing regulation and case law, and comparison and synthesis to summarise gained knowledge and the present regulation de lege ferenda. The professional literature on the expropriation issues within the Czech Republic is limited, and it has been necessary to work with sources for which expropriation is of marginal relevance only. The only exemption to this is the chapter in the book written by Průcha and Neckař (2008).