Decision ID: 001022

In April 1999 the 1971 Fund Executive Committee noted that the Korean Court of first instance had rendered judgements in relation to claims by the Yosu Fishery Co-operative awarding, for the most part, compensation based on apparently arbitrary amounts, since the Court had considered it impossible, on the basis of the evidence presented by the claimants, to quantify the damage suffered. It was noted that the Court had awarded compensation for loss of earnings and/or ‘pain and suffering’ or ‘condolence money’. It was also noted that the Court had held that damage had been caused to fishing grounds and intertidal culture areas, whereas the Fund’s experts had expressed the view that, apart from business interruption, there was no evidence that the oil or the dispersants used to combat the spill had caused any damage. The Committee instructed the Director to pursue the appeal in respect of the question of facts, the decision to allow compensation for ‘pain and suffering’ or ‘condolence money’ and the apparently arbitrary methods used by the Court to determine compensation.