Certificates of inspectors will be reviewed first by building authorities

Brno - Certificates of authorized inspectors will first be reviewed by building authorities, and then any disputes may be resolved by administrative courts. This follows from a new decision by a special senate composed of judges from the Supreme Court and the Supreme Administrative Court (NSS). Until now, the NSS had advocated a different legal opinion, according to which certificates were handled directly by the courts. The criticized DIY store in Brno-Ivanovice may open to customers thanks to this new perspective on certificates.
      The special senate specifically addressed a dispute related to the Science and Technology Park Roztoky, but the newly established rules will also affect other cases, such as the Bauhaus DIY store. The store is completed, but it could not open due to a preliminary measure by the Municipal Court in Prague. Now, the municipal court will likely reject the lawsuit against the certificate, thereby nullifying the preliminary measure as well.
      The dispute over Bauhaus will return to the desk of the employees of the Ivanovice building authority. However, the protests will not end there. "Everything is back to the beginning. It will take longer, and it will cost us a lot of effort again," said today to ČTK the representative of the civic association Klidné Ivanovice, Michaela Thomisová. Activists claim that the DIY store will burden the municipality with noise and traffic, considering the certificate illegal.
      According to activists, it is unfortunate that courts repeatedly change their opinion on how people should defend themselves against certificates. "Effective defense of rights and adherence to laws is thus threatened. For the residents of Ivanovice, this may now mean that trucks and hundreds of cars will start driving to Bauhaus next to their homes - at least for a while," stated Jiří Koželouh from the Nesehnutí movement. "We will do everything to open as soon as possible," said Aleš Pacal, director of Bauhaus ČR, to Czech Television.
      The building authority must decide whether the authorized inspector allowed the construction in accordance with regulations. If it concludes that the certificate is illegal, it will issue a decision stating that the builder does not have the right to proceed with the construction. After that, the authorities can theoretically request remedial measures or removal of the building. Regardless of how the building authority decides, it will not be the final instance in the dispute. Both the protesters and the builder will have further means of defense.
      "Against the result of the proceedings, the initiation of which is not limited by any deadline, it is further possible to appeal and possibly subsequently file a lawsuit in administrative court," stated the NSS in a press release.
      The institute of authorized inspector was introduced by the new building law. The inspector may issue a certificate that essentially replaces the building permit. This allows builders to avoid often lengthy and laborious building proceedings. Lawmakers anticipated that inspectors would mainly approve constructions against which no one protested. However, the certificate was also used by the investor of the DIY store, against which many residents of Ivanovice and environmental activists have fought for several years.
      For a long time, it was unclear who and how could review certificates. Clarity was only brought about by the special senate for resolving competency disputes. The judges also criticized the legal regulation of certificates. A draft amendment to the building law is awaiting discussion in the House of Representatives, which, according to the special senate, brings significant changes and provides overlooked participants in the proceedings with greater guarantees of their rights.