A similar precedent took place in the history of Northern Cyprus. In 2004, the British couple Oramsa were found by a court in Southern Cyprus to have trespassed on the land of the Greek Cypriot Apostolides before 1974. The court ordered the Oramses to demolish the building they built, transfer the property to Apostolides and pay compensation.
The European Court of Justice confirmed the legality of this decision, establishing an important judicial precedent on the rights of the original owners of real estate. For several years, this precedent presented a serious obstacle to real estate purchase and sale transactions in Northern Cyprus. As a result of this precedent, an unofficial division of titles to property rights appeared: Turkish, exchange and gift (TDM) .
Since 2010, the judicial precedent has lost its relevance, since the European Court of Human Rights (hereinafter referred to as the ECHR) recognized that not only the original (Greek Cypriots), but also the current owners of houses in the Northern part of Cyprus have the right to property.
The ECtHR also recognized the activities of the Northern Cyprus Real Estate Commission, established in 2005 in accordance with Law No. 67/2005, as an effective mechanism for reviewing and redressing damages in relation to real estate previously owned by Greek Cypriots.
Thus, the legal precedent of Apostolides v. Orams is not relevant and has not been applied since 2010.
