Presidency

PRESIDENT
Petr Angyalossy
Petr Angyalossy was appointed as the President of the Supreme Court on 20 May 2020 for the period of 10 years. Prior to his appointment as the President, he was a judge, and as of the second half of 2018 a Presiding Judge of the Panel of the Criminal Law Division of the Supreme Court. Prior to his appointment to the Supreme Court in 2017, he was a judge at the District Court in Olomouc (as of 1996), Regional Court in Ostrava, Olomouc branch (as of 1999) and High Court in Olomouc (as of 2004). He graduated from the Faculty of Law of Masaryk University in Brno (Czech Republic), where he subsequently passed the state rigorous examination (and was awarded the academic title of Doctor of Laws – JUDr.) and successfully completed his doctoral studies (and was awarded the academic title of Doctor of Philosophy – PhD.). On 1 December 2022, he became a member of the Academic Council of the Faculty of Law of Palacký University in Olomouc.

VICE-PRESIDENT
Petr Šuk
Petr Šuk was appointed as the Vice-President of the Supreme Court on 17 February 2021. He graduated from the Faculty of Law of Charles University, Prague (1992-1997). In 2000, he was appointed as a judge at the District Court in Liberec. In 2002, he was assigned to the Regional Court in Ústí nad Labem – Liberec branch. Prior to his appointment as the Vice-President of the Supreme Court, he was, as of 2008, a judge (and from 2010 a Presiding Judge of the Panel) of the Civil and Commercial Law Division of the Supreme Court. He is an author or co-author of number of expert publications in the area of Company Law.


FORMER PRESIDENTS

Otakar Motejl (1993-1998)
Otakar Motejl graduated from the Faculty of Law of Charles University, Prague, in 1956. In January 1990, Otakar Motejl was elected President of the Supreme Court of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. From 1 January 1993, he was the President of the newly established Supreme Court of the Czech Republic. He contributed considerably to the smooth progress of the transformation of the original federal Supreme Court of the Czech and Slovak Federative Republic into the Supreme Court of the Czech Republic. In 1998, Otakar Motejl resigned as the President of the Supreme Court and shortly after was appointed Minister of Justice. In 2000, after leaving the Ministry, he became the first ever Ombudsman in the Czech Republic. Otakar Motejl was awarded numerous honours for his professional activities, including Human Rights Award from the US government for his long-standing efforts to protect the law and promote justice, and French Order of the Legion of Honour. He was further awarded the Lawyer of the Year title and was inducted into the Law Hall of Fame. He held also Antonín Randa Gold and Silver Medals awarded by the Association of Czech Lawyers.

Eliška Wagnerová (1998-2002)
Eliška Wagnerová graduated from the Faculty of Law of Charles University, Prague, in 1974. She began her career as a judge of the CivilDivision of the Supreme Court where she was appointed a judge in 1996. From July 1998 to March 2002, Eliška Wagnerová was the President of the Supreme Court. On 20 March 2002, President Václav Havel appointed her as a Vice-President of the Constitutional Court. After her term of office at the Constitutional Court ended, Eliška Wagnerová successfully ran in the 2012 Senate elections and became a Senator for the next six years. In 2009, she was awarded an Antonín Randa Silver Medal. In 2012, she was named Lawyer of the Year in the fields of civil, human rights and constitutional law. From 2002 to 2010, she was an alternate member of the Venice Commission.

Iva Brožová (2002-2015)
Iva Brožová graduated from the Faculty of Law at Masaryk University, Brno, in 1974. From 1975 to 1990, she was a judge at the Municipal Court in Brno. In July 1993, she was appointed a judge of the Constitutional Court and remained in that position until December 1999. From 2000, she was a judge of the Supreme Court and the President of its Civil Division. Iva Brožová became the President of the Supreme Court in March 2002. She was the longest serving President in the Court’s modern history, heading this institution until her resignation in January 2015. She then worked as a judge at the Supreme Court’s Civil and Commercial Division until 30 April 2015. In 2013, Iva Brožová was awarded an Antonín Randa Silver Medal for her contributiton to the promotion of judicial independence. In 2016, she was inducted into the Law Hall of Fame for her extraordinary lifelong contribution to Czech law.

Pavel Šámal (2015-2020)
Pavel Šámal graduated from the Faculty of Law at Charles University, Prague, in 1977. He was a judge and President of Panel at the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division from 1993. In 2006, he was appointed as a professor of criminal law, criminology and forensics at the Faculty of Law of Charles University, Prague. On 1 January 2011, Pavel Šámal assumed the office of the President of the Grand Panel of the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division. In 2015, he became the President of the Supreme Court. Pavel Šámal has long devoted himself to legislative activities and is known, in particular, as the principal author of the new Criminal Code from 2009. Pavel Šámal is a professor of criminal law at the Faculty of Law of Charles Univesrity, Prague, and at the Faculty of Law of Comenius University, Bratislava. Since 2007, Pavel Šámal has held an Antonín Randa Silver Medal, awarded in recognition of his significant contribution to legal theory and practice in the field of criminal law. In 2008, Pavel Šámal was named Lawyer of the Year in the criminal law category.