The Egyptian Administrative Court set Oct. 26 as the first day of a trial in a lawsuit challenging one of Palm Hills’ land deals, the court said on Wednesday.
The Palm Hills case emerged amid a wrangle over the flagship development of Talaat Moustafa (TMG), Egypt’s biggest listed developer, in a case that underscored the risks of investing in Egyptian real estate.
Hamdy Fakhrany, who has filed a case against TMG, is also suing real estate firm Palm Hills for buying a 960,000 square meter plot of land in a Cairo suburb from the New Urban Communities Authority (NUCA), a ministry body, at below market price .
In the TMG case, the High Administrative Court upheld a June ruling last week that NUCA broke the law by selling land to the firm without putting it up for public auction.
Egypt’s cabinet has delayed until early next week a meeting to formulate a legal solution to the land row.
Analysts have said the Palm Hills case was on a much smaller scale than TMG’s Madinaty suit.
