Requirement of guilt for damages for non-economic los after acts with children under the age of 16
Supreme Court judgment 17 September 2020, HR-2020-1798-A, (case no. 20-056588SIV-HRET), civil case, anke over dom.
A (Counsel John Christian Elden) v. B, C (Counsel Steinar Jacob Thomassen)
Justices: Webster, Falch, Bergh, Høgetveit Berg, Thyness
To the aggrieved party in a case under section 302 of the Penal Code had been awarded damages for non-economic loss by the Court of Appeal, see section 3-5 cf. section 3-3 of the Compensatory Damages Act. The Supreme Court found that the special requirement of guilt in section 307 cf. section 302 of the Penal Code with regard to the child's real age is not applicable to the question of damages for non-economic loss, but that the wording in section 3-5 of the Compensatory Damages Act prevails. The condition for awarding damages for non-economic loss for violation of section 302 of the Penal Code is thus that the defendant has acted with intent or gross negligence with regard to the aggrieved party's age.