As a general rule, all damage-causing conduct is unlawful, and the person causing the damage is obliged to compensate the injured party for the full amount of damage suffered, that is, to place the injured party in the position they would have been in had the damage not occurred.

Full compensation includes the decrease in value in the injured party's assets, such as damage to or destruction of property or personal injury suffered in an accident; the costs incurred to remedy the damage, such as repair or medical costs, and attorney's fees are also recoverable; and even lost financial benefit, such as income the injured party would have earned during a period of incapacity for work.

Our firm has significant experience in enforcing damages claims both out of court and through litigation. Following a review of the available documents relating to the damage and a subsequent personal consultation, we can provide effective advice and solutions to our clients, whether the claim arises in connection with a contract, such as damage resulting from defective performance, or from non-contractual damage, such as damage suffered in an accident. We undertake your representation in taking the necessary legal steps, whether by sending an attorney's demand letter, initiating payment order proceedings, conducting out-of-court negotiations, or initiating litigation and enforcing claims before court.

CERTAIN SPECIAL TYPES OF DAMAGE

CLAIMS FOR NON-PECUNIARY DAMAGES ARISING FROM VIOLATION OF PERSONALITY RIGHTS

A person whose personality rights have been violated may claim non-pecuniary damages from the person who caused the violation. Violations of personality rights include in particular:

• Violation of life, physical integrity and health, such as causing permanent bodily injury or illness.
• Violation of personal liberty, private life and home, such as unlawfully preventing someone from expressing an opinion, unlawfully restricting their free movement or residence, unlawfully restricting the free conduct of their sexual life, or unlawfully observing or photographing their residential property or yard.
• Discrimination against a person. In principle, everyone is entitled to equal treatment, and discrimination of any kind may give rise to a claim for non-pecuniary damages.
• Violation of honour and reputation, such as making distorted, inconsistent, excessive, unjustifiably offensive, degrading, disparaging or accusatory value judgments about a person, or damaging their reputation by stating false facts.
• Violation of the right to private secrets and the protection of personal data, such as transmitting any personal data to an unauthorised person without consent or sharing it on a social media platform.
• Violation of the right to bear a name, such as unauthorised use of another person's name or misuse of that name.
• Violation of the right to one's image and voice recording, such as taking photographs or video recordings of a person without authorisation, unlawfully making such recordings public, or granting access to them to unauthorised persons.

In addition to claiming non-pecuniary damages in the above cases of personality rights violations, you may also demand that the infringement be ceased and the infringer be prohibited from committing similar infringements in the future; that the infringer provide appropriate satisfaction and ensure appropriate publicity for this at their own expense; the termination of the injurious situation, restoration of the state preceding the infringement and destruction or removal of the infringing nature of the object created through the infringement; and that the infringer surrender to you the financial advantage obtained through the infringement.

In cases involving violations of personality rights, our firm can provide professional advice based on an individual assessment of the matter regarding the enforcement of the injured party's rights and the effective use of available legal tools, and we undertake full legal representation in the enforcement of such claims.

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE

If you received medical care, underwent surgery or another treatment and suffered damage as a result, or an unexpected adverse outcome occurred during the intervention, you are entitled to compensation for the full amount of damage incurred. In many cases, you may also claim a significant amount of non-pecuniary damages, for example if you suffered psychological or mental injury during or as a result of receiving medical care. In the case of permanent health impairment, the court may even award annuity-type compensation for the rest of the injured person's life.

Typical cases include infections suffered during medical care, such as sepsis, complications arising after surgical intervention, or unexpected aesthetic results following plastic surgery. When enforcing claims for damages or non-pecuniary damages based on medical malpractice, we always involve a medical expert for the preliminary professional assessment of the case. On this basis, we can provide well-founded advice on the chances and most effective method of enforcing your claim by legal means.

EMPLOYER LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES

In the course of work or professional activity, permanent occupational diseases, workplace accidents, injuries, poisoning or even death may frequently occur. In such cases, the employer has a very strict liability for damages and, as a general rule, is obliged to compensate all damage not covered by social security benefits. In the case of permanent injury or illness, the employer is generally also obliged to pay annuity-type compensation to the injured employee.

Compensation may also be claimed from the employer if the employer unlawfully terminates the employment contract. In the case of termination by notice, the most common ground for claiming compensation is a defect in the reasoning, since the reason for termination may relate only to the employee's conduct in connection with the employment relationship, the employee's capability, or the employer's operations. In the case of unlawfully terminated employment, the employer is obliged to compensate the damage caused in connection with the unlawful termination. The most common type of damage is lost income, for which the maximum amount of compensation is 12 months' absentee pay.

It is important that the time limit for enforcing claims before court for damages suffered in connection with employment is shorter than the five-year civil law limitation period: it is only three years from the occurrence of the damage. Our firm has significant experience in enforcing employer liability claims and successfully represents clients against employers or former employers, whether before court or in out-of-court dispute resolution.

CLAIMS FOR COMPENSATION IN THE EVENT OF FLIGHT CANCELLATION OR DELAY

If, during the past five years, your flight was delayed by more than three hours, your flight was cancelled, or you were denied boarding, you may be entitled under the relevant European Union Regulation to compensation of up to EUR 600, regardless of the price of your ticket. Low-cost airlines are also obliged to pay compensation. The only exception applies where the above events were caused by extraordinary circumstances or force majeure, such as severe weather conditions.

The amount of compensation depends not on the extent of the delay, but on the distance flown. Under the regulation, passengers may receive EUR 250 for flights under 1,500 km, EUR 400 for flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km, and EUR 600 for flights exceeding 3,500 km. Our firm has significant experience in the fast and effective enforcement of such claims against the relevant airlines.