OGH to rule on Benko verdict on Thursday – Hearing in the Grand Hall of the Palace of Justice

Update of 1 July 2026: What is new since the previous day

Update of 1 July 2026: What is new since the previous day? On Wednesday, the details of the oral hearing at the OGH became known: the exact time, the announcement by the WKStA that it would pursue an appeal against the acquittal on a second charge, as well as the defense attorney's statement that the travel effort from Innsbruck would be too great for Benko. On Thursday, Benko did not appear in person in the courtroom.

The starting point: Proceedings before the Innsbruck Regional Court

At the center is the criminal proceedings on suspicion of fraudulent bankruptcy (betrügerische Krida), in which Signa founder René Benko was partially convicted in mid-October at the Innsbruck Regional Court. The court of first instance considered it proven that the real estate investor had given his mother 300,000 euros as a gift and thereby withheld these assets from his creditors. There is also talk of an advance rent payment of 360,000 euros for a villa in the Innsbruck district of Hungerburg shortly before the Signa wave of collapses, which was dealt with in a second charge.

The first criminal trial at the Innsbruck Regional Court ended with Benko's conviction to two years in prison for fraudulent bankruptcy. In another proceeding at the same court in December 2025, Benko was also convicted of fraudulent bankruptcy and sentenced to 15 months of probation. He now faces trial on several partial aspects of the bankruptcy charges.

Positions of the defense and the WKStA

According to information from the hearing, defense attorney Norbert Wess is contesting his client's conviction. The Economic and Corruption Prosecutor's Office (WKStA), for its part, is appealing the acquittal on the second charge. This second point concerns the aforementioned advance rent payment of 360,000 euros for a villa in the Innsbruck district of Hungerburg.

Benko did not appear in the courtroom on the day of the OGH hearing. His defense attorney stated during the hearing: „Der Reiseaufwand aus Innsbruck wäre zu groß". With this, Wess referred to his client's current place of residence. According to information from the investigative proceedings, Benko has been in pretrial detention since January 2024.

Broader investigations surrounding the Signa collapse

With the Signa wave of collapses, the WKStA is now dealing with 17 different factual matters. This breadth of investigations shows that the Signa case extends beyond Benko's personal case and concerns an entire web of real estate transactions, corporate structures, and financial flows.

Procedure and proceedings before the OGH: This is a first-instance decision by the supreme court, which is rare in the Austrian judiciary. The OGH is responsible because the charge falls directly within its jurisdiction. After the end of the oral hearing at 12 p.m., a decision by the highest judges is expected immediately.

In terms of content, the core of the pending proceedings concerns whether the first-instance conviction of Benko by the Innsbruck Regional Court will stand. Both the question of the 300,000 euros allegedly paid to his mother and the advance rent payment of 360,000 euros for the Hungerburg villa play a central role. In its decision, the OGH will have to assess both points.