Final Word from Monday, July 30, 2018
We're being sued for the first time in the 18-year history of the Final Word. Lawyer Radek Pokorný claims we damaged his good name by linking him to one of the companies in the highway-toll tender. He secured two preliminary injunctions requiring us to remove the Final Word of Oct. 26, 2017, one of which is still valid. He's seeking Kč 400,000 in damages in one of the trials, and the first public hearing will be held on Wed. at 10am in Prague 2 Municipal Court (Slezská 9). It's not entirely a coincidence that Pokorný is going to court just a week after he appeared before the OKD commission. It's a snowball effect. People who thought that the world would never change are suddenly being caught up in a whirlwind of events. That's why we look forward to this trial. For the first time ever, some of the behind-the-scenes events of the past 15 years will be discussed in open court. If the judge allows it, our first witness against Pokorný will be none other than Bohuslav Sobotka. [Czech Republic freedom of speech press speech Wagner Kapsch]
Glossary of difficult words
preliminary injunction - a court order made in the early stages of a lawsuit or petition which prohibits the parties from doing an act in order to preserve the status quo until a pending ruling or outcome;
snowball effect - a process that starts from an initial state of small significance and builds upon itself, becoming larger and also perhaps potentially dangerous or disastrous;
whirlwind - an exciting, confused, or disorderly process.