Court of Appeal rejects 50-year-old Limassol expropriation claim against state

Local LimassolpropertiesTop Newstrial Court of Appeal rejects 50-year-old Limassol expropriation claim against state View Of Limassol 01 Relevant News Court of Appeal rejects 50-year-old Limassol expropriation claim against state 4 August 2026 “We got it before the hard-to-reach area” – Forestry Department on Stavrovouni fire 4 August 2026 Congo Ebola response hit by worker protests over late pay 4 August 2026 Panayiota Charalambous 4 August 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber The Court of Appeal has rejected an appeal by property owners against the Republic of Cyprus, closing a land expropriation dispute that began in Limassol nearly half a century ago. In a unanimous ruling dated July 16, 2026, the court upheld the first-instance decision. It rejected all 16 grounds of appeal and awarded costs of €4,000 plus VAT, where applicable, in favour of the Republic. The case concerned the 1977 expropriation of a 2,007-square-metre plot from the property of a now-deceased woman, carried out for the improvement, realignment and paving of the Limassol-Nicosia road. Work was completed in 1979-1980, and the remainder of the property was later transferred to her sons. The appellants sought compensation for the value of the expropriated land and for loss of use and enjoyment of the property over several years. Alternatively, they sought €80,000 in compensation for road construction, or a court order requiring the Republic to build a road giving direct access to Spyrou Kyprianou Avenue, as well as punitive damages. The alleged 1993 agreement Their central argument was that, when a previous court referral was withdrawn in 1993, an agreement had been reached with the state under which the family would drop its compensation claim in exchange for the Republic building a road, pavements and other infrastructure to secure direct access from the property to the avenue. The court found that the existence of such an agreement was never proven. The evidence and documents in the case showed neither an explicit proposal nor acceptance establishing a contractual obligation on the state’s part, the ruling stated. The court also noted that no evidence was presented showing the terms of the expropriation or the relevant plan had been breached. The judges rejected the claim that a 1992 letter from the Land Registry amounted to an assurance that pavements and other infrastructure would be built, ruling that the letter was purely informational in nature. They further found that the construction of pavements and infrastructure networks was part of a separate, later town-planning project, not the expropriation in question. Access and development claims The Court of Appeal also agreed with the first-instance assessment that testimony from one of the appellants, stating that companies had expressed interest in renting the property but withdrew because of its condition, amounted to hearsay. The individuals said to have shown interest were not called to testify, judges determined. On the claim that the property lacked direct access to the avenue, the court found that, despite the past existence of an open ditch, there was no strip of land cutting the property off from access. The ditch had already been covered before the case was heard. The court also noted that the property’s non-development could not be attributed to the Republic, since the owners themselves had withdrawn an application for planning permission to develop the plot. The Court of Appeal further ruled that claims of unequal treatment compared to neighbouring properties could not be examined, as they had not been included in the original statement of claim. In conclusion, the court found that none of the 16 grounds of appeal had merit, fully upheld the first-instance ruling, and definitively rejected the appellants’ claims against the Republic of Cyprus. Subscribe to our Newsletter Latest News “We got it before the hard-to-reach area” – Forestry Department on Stavrovouni fire Congo Ebola response hit by worker protests over late pay Deputy Culture Minister inspects Venetian Walls restoration works in Nicosia Forest recovery from fire can take decades, even centuries, forestry official says Onirodiadromes returns to fill Lefkara with music Ukraine accuses Russia of war crime after video shows drone attacking market vendor Investigators believe grinder sparks caused Agios Mamas fire, workers fled scene Follow en.philenews on Google News and be the first to know all the news about Cyprus and the world.