We advised a real estate investment company on the expropriation of its property of approximately 3,000 square metres by a municipality in Attica, securing full compensation of approximately €1.65 million. The matter was resolved amicably, without adversarial court proceedings against the municipality or the more than 100 other parties who shared the compensation obligation.
The Mandate
Under Greek expropriation law, when land is expropriated for roads or other public works, the obligation to pay compensation may be shared between the expropriating authority and the owners of adjacent properties who benefit from the works (παρόδιοι ιδιοκτήτες). In this case, compensation was divided between the municipality and more than 100 adjacent owners, each of whom was a separate obligor.
Our Role
We issued a formal legal opinion and carried out due diligence on the ownership history of approximately 100 adjacent roadside properties, to identify the parties against whom our client had compensation claims. We then obtained a court decision recognising our client’s entitlement to compensation against the municipality.
Through careful negotiation, we persuaded the municipality to pay its share amicably. We also negotiated an agreement for the municipality to assume the compensation owed by all adjacent owners. This spared our client the cost and delay of separate recovery proceedings against more than 100 individuals.
Finally, we secured from the Municipal Council an extension of the expropriation’s validity period, preserving compensation rights that would otherwise have lapsed.
Why It Matters for Property Owners
Owners affected by expropriation should act strategically to protect their rights, monitor time limits and consider negotiated solutions with the authority that save time and costs. A combined legal and negotiation strategy can deliver full compensation faster and at lower cost than litigation.
For further information on expropriation and real estate disputes in Greece, please contact our team.
