Four siblings have been awarded €10,000 after a court found that rent laws dating back to 1979 had denied them the right of fully enjoying their own property. 

Carmen, Nazzareno, Alexander and Andrew Magro had filed a constitutional application claiming that they had been unfairly deprived of their property without adequate compensation. 

The applicants argued that article 12 of the Housing (Decontrol) Ordinance, which allowed a Maltese occupant of a property held under a temporary emphyteutical concession to convert his title to one of lease, directly violated the landlord's right to enjoyment of his property.

In this case the applicants had inherited a block of eight apartments known as 'Verdala Flats', in Triq Salvu Privitera, Paceville, from their father Fedele Magro, who had in turn acquired the land in 1959.

In 1966 the property had been granted by way of temporary subemphyteusis to Captain Joseph Wismayer, who in turn had leased an apartment to third parties.

The First Hall Civil Court presided by Mr Justice Silvio Meli noted that, as had been established by previous judgments, the 1979 legal amendments violated the rights of landlords who could neither evict their tenants nor revise their rents so as to reflect the actual market value of their property.

This, the court observed, amounted to a deprivation of enjoyment of one's property without adequate compensation.

The court made reference to an earlier judgment concerning a similar scenario wherein the presiding judge had criticised " the inertia of the authorities" who had done nothing to offer a legislative remedy that is effective and not merely cosmetic.

The court, concluded that article 12 of the Housing (Decontrol) Ordinance violated the constitution by depriving landlords of enjoyment without adequate compensation.

In upholding the claims of the applicants, the court stated that the current lease had been granted without their consent and thus amounted to forceful seizure of property. Moreover, the rent received was not just compensation.

For this reason the court declared that the applicants had a right to claim fair and adequate compensation from government.

Whilst confirming that the Prime minister had been non-suited, the court condemned the government, represented by the Attorney General,to pay the applicants €10,000 by way of compensation and to bear the costs of the lawsuit.