In Suverénní Řád Maltézských Rytířů – České Velkopřevorství v The Czech Republic [2025] ECHR 202, the Czech Grand Priory of the Sovereign Order of the Knights of Malta (thank you, Google Translate!) sought restitution of its property. Some had been confiscated in 1945 under Presidential Decree No. 12/1945, which provided for immediate confiscation without compensation of agricultural property owned by people or companies/corporations that had intentionally served the German war machine for fascist or Nazi purposes. Yet more was confiscated in April 1948 under Law no. 142/1947.

As of 1 January 2013, the Church Property Settlement Act (Law No. 428/2012) permitted the restitution of property or parts of property that had originally belonged to particular Churches and which had been unlawfully confiscated by the communist regime. The law applied to property owned by the State, but not to property owned by persons governed by private law. Churches also had standing under the Act to bring proceedings for the restitution of property that they had originally owned and which had been transferred to private persons in breach of a blocking provision in s.29 of the Land Ownership Act. However, property confiscated from Churches under Presidential Decrees Nos. 12/1945 and 108/1945 was excluded from restitution under that Act. Continue reading →