Case study: we secured publicity for a successful court case between an investor and the city of Hodonín

Our law firm Frank Bold Advokáti successfully represented a local investor in a lawsuit against the City of Hodonín for non-transparent sale of a city-owned land. From the beginning of the case, the work included the involvement of the PR team from Frank Bold Advisory. We provided the client with a complete communication service aimed at raising the profile of the case, especially in the local press, and getting information to the public.

Case summary‍

ELVOREV sought to buy a city-owned land in the centre of Hodonín, where it planned to build a health centre with specialised surgeries. However, the city of Hodonín sold the land without a public tender and for a lower price (CZK 1.3 million) to REAG PLUS, which had the intention of moving an existing cardiovascular centre to the land.

The law firm Frank Bold represented ELVOREV in a lawsuit against the City of Hodonín in which it sought to cancel the sale of the land. At the end of May, the judge of the District Court in Hodonín issued a not yet final verdict confirming the position of the plaintiff ELVOREV and declaring the sale of the land unlawful. The land is therefore returned to the ownership of the town and the unjust enrichment between the contracting parties will have to be settled.

Key points we used to communicate the case clearly

• ELVOREV offered CZK 5 million for the land, while REAG PLUS paid only CZK 3.7 million.
• ELVOREV's intention was in line with the regulatory plan of the area and offered new health infrastructure in the city. In contrast, the REAG PLUS plan required an amendment to the regulatory plan of the area and only required the relocation of the existing centre, meaning that the health infrastructure in the city would not be significantly expanded.
• The owner of REAG PLUS stood for the local elections on the candidate list of the coalition party, which subsequently approved the sale of the land to the company.
• The law firm Frank Bold argued that the town of Hodonín did not act transparently and did not act as a good manager.

Medialization

We summarized the case of the non-transparent sale of a municipal plot in Hodonín through a clear media kit that we sent to local journalists.

Thanks to this, the case was monitored from the beginning by ČTK and local media: in autumn 2023, for example, the local daily Deník reported on the case, and later Mladá Fronta DNES discussed it in detail, followed by Czech Radio. Czech Television's investigative programmes also showed interest in the litigation.

In parallel, we provided the client with text designs for the Hodonín town hall newspaper and associated full-page advertising.

Thanks to these activities, there was a great deal of interest among journalists, who were kept informed about the progress of the case. The announcement of the verdict took place in the presence of the Czech Television (Česká televize) cameras and the topic was again covered by MF Dnes and the local daily Hodonín deník.

Results

The court ruled in favour of ELVOREV and found the sale of the land to REAG PLUS to be unlawful. According to the court, the town made a mistake and the land is now to be returned to the ownership of the town of Hodonín so that the town council can decide on its future fate. The unfairness of the competition and the pressure to quickly approve the sale of the land to a pre-selected bidder were repeatedly mentioned in the judgment. This court decision is a parallel line to the criminal investigation of the 17 councillors who decided on the sale of the land.

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