<h1>Court: Incheba must pay Prague for the burned Industrial Palace</h1>

Prague - According to the court, Prague is entitled to compensation from Incheba for the fire-damaged left wing of the Industrial Palace. At the beginning of April, the District Court for Prague 7 made this decision, announced its vice-chairman Roman Podlešák today. The information was also confirmed by the councilor for culture Václav Novotný (TOP 09). The court has not yet ruled on the amount of damages. Incheba plans to appeal the non-final ruling. Prague previously estimated the damages at over one billion crowns.
The capital city, in addition to Incheba, has sued another two companies, Eur-med and P.A.P.S.T., which were exhibiting before the fateful fire at the Industrial Palace. "The lawsuit against the other two defendants for damage compensation in the amount of 1,045,071,263 CZK was dismissed," stated Podlešák. However, Incheba disagrees with the exclusion of the companies and will appeal the court's decision. "Incheba should not be liable for damages... the exhibitors did not comply with safety regulations," said company spokesman Radovan Ježovič to ČTK.
The Industrial Palace, which Incheba has rented for a long time, was destroyed by a fire in October 2008. Since then, Prague has been involved not only in a court dispute over damage compensation but also unsuccessfully with insurance companies. The police closed the case back in 2009, stating that they did not find the culprit. Prague has already spent 16.5 million crowns on legal services related to enforcing damages for the burned exhibition hall, as noted in today's control committee of the council.
The city has previously attempted to terminate the lease agreement with Incheba. It is now negotiating this again with the tenant. "We would like to agree on shortening the contract, as the exhibition center is deteriorating," Novotný stated. However, according to the councilor, no reasonable conditions have yet been agreed upon with Incheba. The contract is valid until 2016.
The Industrial Palace was built for the Jubilee Land Exhibition, which took place from May to October 1891. The Industrial Palace is listed as a cultural monument as part of the Exhibition Grounds, which has been protected as a historical site since the 1950s. According to earlier estimates by the city council, the completion of the monument will cost about 1.6 billion crowns.

A selection of events related to the fire at the Industrial Palace at the Prague Exhibition Grounds:

• October 16, 2008 - A fire destroyed the left wing of the Art Nouveau building of the Industrial Palace at the Prague Exhibition Grounds. The palace was owned by the city, which was renting it to Incheba.
• October 21, 2008 - According to a draft amendment to the lease agreement with Incheba approved by the city council, Incheba was to restore the palace by the end of September 2010. Incheba was to commit to using insurance money and possibly cover any remainder from its own funds.
• October 24, 2008 - Insurance companies paid Incheba an advance on the insurance policy.
• February 13, 2009 - The police reported that the fire was caused by an electric cooker that was switched on in the exhibition stand's kitchenette.
• March 13, 2009 - Prague councilor Milan Richter stated that the city had requested the court to block the insurance payout for the palace to Incheba.
• March 17, 2009 - The city council decided to start preparing the reconstruction of the palace.
• March 20, 2009 - According to Incheba, the court rejected Prague's proposal to block the insurance payout. According to Richter, however, the court stated that the insurance belongs to the owner of the property, i.e., Prague, and deemed the preliminary injunction unnecessary.
• May 12, 2009 - According to the police, the cause of the fire was likely a criminal offense, but the police did not find the culprit.
• June 24, 2009 - Insurance companies estimated the damages to the palace at 181 million crowns (this amount was later paid to Prague). However, the city demanded more than 1.2 billion crowns from the insurers and therefore turned to the court.
• July 28, 2009 - According to the insurance company Uniqa, the insurance for the Industrial Palace was placed in judicial custody.
• December 22, 2009 - Prague councilors decided that the city would negotiate with Incheba to terminate the lease agreement by the end of 2010. Incheba is also to acknowledge that the insurance belongs to the city. Incheba stated that it is ready to provide the city with the insurance money and participate in the restoration of the palace but will not agree to leave the Exhibition Grounds.
• March 9, 2010 - Prague announced an architectural competition for the completion of the Industrial Palace and the construction of an underpass beneath it.
• June 1, 2010 - The council decided that the palace would be completed according to the design of architect Jakub Cigler and his studio Cigler Marani Architects.
• June 17, 2010 - Incheba agreed to a deal with Prague, under which it would transfer the insurance for the burned palace to the city, pay a higher rent, and the lease would be shortened to 2016.
• October 12, 2010 - The council of the capital city decided to file a lawsuit for damages for the fire at the Industrial Palace against Incheba, P.a.p.s.t. and Eur-med. Incheba had leased the Exhibition Grounds at the time of the fire, P.a.p.s.t. was repairing the electrical installation, and Eur-med had rented the stand that caught fire.
• November 25, 2011 - The District Court for Prague 6 rejected Prague's lawsuit, which was seeking 1.2 billion crowns from Česká podnikatelská pojišťovna and Uniqa insurance. According to the court, Prague was not the entity that could claim the insurance payment. The city council appealed the verdict.
• Early April 2012 - The District Court for Prague 7 ruled that Prague is entitled to compensation from Incheba. The court has not yet decided on the amount of damages. Incheba announced that it would appeal the non-final ruling.