Teen victim of rape awarded quarter million zlotys in moral damages

A middle school student was raped by three pupils of the same school. In a case heard by a regional court, she won PLN 250,000 in compensation for moral injuries to be paid by the perpetrators.

The case was conducted by the Strategic Litigation Program. The claimant was represented pro bono by Adam Kempa, Małgorzata Surdek, Adam Jodkowski and Marcin Zbytniewski, attorneys working for CMS Cameron McKenna.

The incident occurred in 2008 when the claimant was still under 15. The perpetrators were too young to be tried for a criminal offence and a guardianship court sentenced them to a young offender institution but suspended their convictions for a probation period. In 2012, the victim and her mother submitted an application to the European Court of Human Rights. The proceedings ended with Poland’s unilateral declaration admitting violations of ECHR Articles 3, 8 and 13.

In 2015, the woman brought a court action against the perpetrators of rape, requesting PLN 350,000 in compensation for moral injuries. Last week, a regional court ruled that the perpetrators should pay her PLN 250,000 together with interest. The court took into consideration drastic circumstances of the case and the fact that the perpetrators have never expressed remorse or apologised to the victim. On the contrary, during the trial, the perpetrators attempted to undermine the victim’s credibility and suggested that she freely consented to a sexual intercourse rather than having been raped.

The judgment of the regional court is not final.