reprivatisation | In Principle

There is divergence in the case law on whether the percentage rate that should be applied in setting the amount of inheritance tax is the rate in force on the date the tax obligation accrued or the date when the tax authority issues the decision setting the amount of the tax.

In a case handled by Wardyński & Partners, the firm has obtained a favourable ruling from the Warsaw Regional Court awarding damages for loss caused by inaction of the authorities and wrongful acts and omissions in administrative proceedings.

In a case led by Wardyński & Partners, the firm obtained a ruling from the Supreme Court favourable to owners of buildings as well as communal tenants, establishing the rule of the liability of the City of Warsaw for non-contractual use of the property.

The EU’s Succession Regulation (650/2012), which went in force on 17 August 2015, permits a choice of the law that will govern inheritance from a decedent. In the context of Polish reprivatisation cases, the best choice is Polish law.

An interview with Krzysztof Wiktor, a partner at Wardyński & Partners who co-heads the Reprivatisation Practice, about the little reprivatisation act, a controversial ruling by the Constitutional Tribunal, and current trends in the case law.

Owners of Warsaw property still face barriers in taking over possession of buildings from the city, even though the rules governing delivery of possession were established in an order issued by the Mayor of Warsaw in 2008.

Decision to sell units in a building covered by the Warsaw Decree: A source of injury in pursuing claims for damages

After reprivatisation proceedings lasting many years, the legal successors of the former owners of real estate manage to regain the property that was once lost. But often the current value is grossly low, which justifies pursuing compensatory damages.

Failure to consider a decree application can be grounds for public entities to make up the loss for depriving the owners of rights to land in Warsaw.

Monetary compensation for former owners of Warsaw Decree properties could help in many instances to remove the barrier to acquisition by residential cooperatives of adjacent plots of land to improve the conditions for development of their own real estate.

Reprivatisation cases require identification of all the former owners of the property as well as their legal successors. Thorny problems can arise when inheritance documents from France are involved.

Identifying all the parties to reprivatisation proceedings can be difficult when the heirs of the former owners are spread around the world. Proving legal succession requires submission to the court of civil register documents, which may be registered in Poland for the purpose of Polish legal proceedings.