Saturday, 25 October 2025
The long-running dispute over the lease of Prague’s historic Žofín Palace has entered another phase after the Municipal Court in Prague overturned a ruling by the District Court for Prague 1 and returned the case for further proceedings. The decision, issued on September 4, 2025, was based on procedural flaws in the lower court’s handling of the case. While the Municipal Court did not address the substantive issues of the dispute, the outcome prolongs the conflict over who has the right to operate the 19th-century palace on Slovanský Island.
At the center of the case is the NKL agency, which has managed Žofín Palace since 1994 under a lease agreement that expired on December 31, 2024. Prague 1 maintains that the contract is no longer valid and that NKL is occupying the property without authorization. NKL, however, argues that it exercised a contractual right to extend the lease until 2034, a claim the district disputes. In February, the District Court for Prague 1 rejected NKL’s lawsuit seeking recognition of the lease extension. In March, the court also ordered NKL to vacate the property, ruling that the lease had lapsed. That decision was hailed as a breakthrough by Prague 1, which has already selected Zátiší Catering Group as the new operator of the palace.
The Municipal Court’s ruling in September now sends the matter back to the district level, requiring a fresh hearing. Mayor Terezie Radoměřská described the latest development as a “postponement of justice, not a denial of it,” and said she was confident that the district court would ultimately uphold Prague 1’s arguments. Deputy Mayor Tomáš Heres added that the district would continue to pursue every legal avenue to prevent “public property from being held hostage by deliberate obstruction.”
Zátiší, which won Prague 1’s tender earlier this year, has offered more than double the rent previously paid by NKL, pledging an annual payment of 20.4 million CZK compared to NKL’s approximately 10 million CZK. Prague 1 officials argue that the tender was conducted transparently and in accordance with the law. NKL, by contrast, has questioned the validity of the selection process and insists that the municipality must also compensate it for furniture and equipment installed in the palace before any handover can occur.
The prolonged legal battle has already disrupted cultural life in Prague. Charles University canceled its annual ball, and medical students abandoned plans for a gala event, citing the uncertainty surrounding the venue. The case has also revived public debate over past lease extensions granted to NKL before municipal elections in 2010 and 2018, decisions that critics say entrenched the agency’s position in the palace despite questions over its performance.
For now, the dispute remains unresolved, and the fate of Žofín Palace is once again in the hands of the District Court for Prague 1. With both sides entrenched and court procedures dragging on, one of Prague’s most recognizable cultural landmarks remains caught in legal limbo, awaiting clarity over who will control its future.
