The Regional Court in Brno has to pay the state 310 million for the judiciary complex

Brno - The Regional Court in Brno does not have to pay the state a full 1.9 billion crowns for mistakes made during the construction of a new judicial complex in Brno. It should pay 310 million crowns. This was decided based on the court's request to reduce the amount by the Appeals Financial Directorate in Brno. CTK was informed today by the spokesperson of the regional court, Lenka Smutná Polachová. The court requested the tax office to postpone payment of the newly assessed amount. It is considering whether to file an administrative lawsuit against this decision to avoid paying the penalty.
    The court was imposed a so-called levy for violating budgetary discipline in connection with the project of constructing the judicial complex. The Financial Directorate in Brno issued a payment order for 1.9 billion crowns in November 2011, which means that the court was supposed to return to the state everything the new judicial complex cost.
    The regional court filed an appeal against this to the Appeals Financial Directorate, and since it was unsuccessful, it also filed an administrative lawsuit. The Supreme Administrative Court then concluded that the Appeals Financial Directorate must reassess the entire matter. In response to this, the appeals directorate reduced the levy, that is, the sanction, against the court.
    "This is a significant reduction of the imposed levy; however, the newly assessed amount still substantially burdens not only the budget of the Regional Court in Brno but also the department (the Ministry of Justice) as a whole. Therefore, the court will discuss further steps with the ministry," said the spokesperson.
    The tax office found errors in the administration related to the construction of the complex. According to them, the regional court did not proceed correctly with the project. However, the judicial complex is standing and has been in operation for quite some time.
    In 2005, it was estimated that the construction of the complex would cost 805 million crowns, but after precise calculations of expenses, the price rose to 1.674 billion crowns. This investment amount was also approved by the Ministry of Justice. However, the total costs were 1.938 billion crowns. This amount includes not only the construction of the court buildings but also their complete furnishing.
    The former president of the regional court, Jaromír Pořízek, previously pointed out that the change in costs for this project has been poorly commented on. According to him, they increased from the original 800 million to nearly two billion, but many details from the project documentation, such as connection to transportation infrastructure or networks, were not known when the initial amount was established. Pořízek is now being prosecuted for alleged flaws in the entire project.