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| Couple win court fight over villa | Couple win court fight over villa |
| (29 minutes later) | |
| A Sussex couple seeking to keep their dream holiday villa in northern Cyprus have won their High Court battle. | |
| Linda and David Orams, from Hove, built their property in Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus four years ago after buying the plot with retirement funds. | Linda and David Orams, from Hove, built their property in Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus four years ago after buying the plot with retirement funds. |
| They were taken to court by Meletios Apostolides, who said his family owned the land, near Kyrenia, in the 1970s. | They were taken to court by Meletios Apostolides, who said his family owned the land, near Kyrenia, in the 1970s. |
| He had insisted that either the villa was knocked down or the Orams handed their property in Sussex over to him. | He had insisted that either the villa was knocked down or the Orams handed their property in Sussex over to him. |
| Mr Orams, 61, and his wife, 59, spent their £160,000 savings on buying the plot and building the villa and pool. | Mr Orams, 61, and his wife, 59, spent their £160,000 savings on buying the plot and building the villa and pool. |
| 'Substantial victory' | |
| They bought the land from the registered owner in accordance with the laws and land registry system of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) - which was declared after Turkish troops invaded the area in 1974. | |
| A statement issued on behalf of the couple said the judgment was a "total vindication" of their position. | A statement issued on behalf of the couple said the judgment was a "total vindication" of their position. |
| It said: "It is a substantial victory in a battle by them to maintain and retain their retirement home and their home in England. | |
| "The judgment allows others in the same position to invest in TRNC without the threat of enforcement of judgments rendered in the Republic of Cyprus in the EU." | |
| Their counsel, Cherie Booth QC, had argued that the case raised a matter of fundamental importance for people who lived in the Turkish-controlled region in relation to property dealings. | |
| Mr Justice Jack's ruling that a judgement obtained against the retired couple in Nicosia was not enforceable in the English courts followed a four-day hearing at the High Court in London in July. |