Decision ID: 003651

In October 2009 the 1992 Fund Executive Committee recalled that in April 2008 the Commercial Court in Lorient had rendered a judgement in respect of a claim by an estate agent for economic losses allegedly suffered in 2000 which had been rejected by the 1992 Fund on the grounds that the claimant had not proved to have suffered losses as a result of the contamination caused by the Erika incident. It was recalled that the Court had stated that it was not bound by the 1992 Fund’s criteria for admissibilty and that it was for the Court to interpret the concept of ‘pollution damage’ and to apply it to the individual claim by determining whether there was a sufficiently close link of causation between the events that lead to the damage (‘le fait générateur’) and the losses suffered. The Committee recalled that the Court had however rejected the claim on the grounds that the claimant had not proved to have suffered losses. It was noted that in June 2009 the Court of Appeal in Rennes had confirmed the judgement of the Commercial Court to reject the claim on the grounds that the claimant had not proved that there was a sufficiently close link of causation between the alleged losses and the contamination as a result of the Erika incident. With regard to an additional claim for losses incurred in 2001 presented in the Court of Appeal, the Court held that the claim was time-barred under Article VIII of the 1992 Civil Liabiolity Convention and Article 6 of the 1992 Fund Convention.