Builders are dismantling a house, where the Supreme Court will expand

author of the design: Arch.Design s.r.o.

Brno - In the places where the extension of the Supreme Court will be located, the construction company has started to gradually dismantle the empty apartment building. The use of the lot for the needs of the judiciary has been planned for several years, and there has been a long wait for funding. The estimated costs amount to 114 million crowns. For a long time, the Supreme Court has been striving to move to another, more representative building. However, the court is currently not pursuing the construction of a new headquarters on a green field, the court's chairman Pavel Šámal told journalists today.

The extension at the site of the demolished house will create 100 office spaces, a multifunctional meeting hall, facilities for the archive, a library, and underground parking. It is expected to be completed in the autumn of next year.

The apartment building on Bayerova Street was purchased by the Supreme Court in 2002 for 17 million crowns. An expert study showed that renovation is not economically advantageous; it is better to demolish the building and construct a new one in its place.

The current main building of the Supreme Court was constructed between 1931 and 1932 for the General Pension Institute. When the Supreme Court returned to Brno in 1993, there were 25 judges and another 53 employees in the building. Today, there are 68 judges, 12 judicial trainees, and nearly 270 assistants and other staff working at the Supreme Court.

"For example, we have 12 people in one office, which is absolutely untenable," said Šámal. The court also has five detached workplaces, which complicates work, for instance, due to the need to transfer files.

The extension is being handled by the Ministry of Justice. "This is a test for us and a preparation for the construction of a judicial complex in Ústí nad Labem," said Deputy Miroslav Zábranský.

In Brno, there has long been talk of a completely new headquarters for the Supreme Court, with discussions about various locations and buildings. "I have no interest in the Supreme Court moving to some modern building that might also be linked to other judicial components. It deserves its own representative building," said Šámal. Therefore, negotiations are ongoing about relocating to an older building in the city center. Such strategic discussions, however, can take a very long time, Šámal added.