Aktueller Stand der Entschädigung für den Reaktorunfall im Kernkraftwerk Fukushima Daiichi – unter Berücksichtigung der jüngsten Änderungen der Interimsrichtlinien

Abstract

This article analyzes the current status of compensation for the Fukushima nuclear accident. Many people who in 2011 were either evacuated by government order or "voluntarily" left their homes out of fear of harm from the radiation leak are still unable to return to their local communities. In addition to direct negotiations with the operator of the accident reactor, TEPCO, and conciliation proceedings before a special ADR center for nuclear damage, victims are now increasingly asserting their claims in court. As a result of their efforts, and despite the resistance of TEPCO, the so-called Interim Guidelines, which the Dispute Reconciliation Committee for Nuclear Damage Compensation developed in 2011 as the basis for compensation, are now clearly considered only a minimum standard for the type of compensable damages and the amounts to be paid. In particular, several Supreme Court decisions from March 2022 made it clear that the guidelines in their then form were inadequate. The Dispute Reconciliation Committee has therefore recently clarified the non-exhaustive nature of the Guidelines through a Fifth Amendment to the Interim Guidelines, but it has also adjusted the standards for compensability of various types of damage, not least psychological damage. This article critically evaluates these changes. Even though the Fifth Amendment is intended to ensure that every victim can claim compensation for damages shown to have been caused by the reactor accident, in accordance with the circumstances of the individual case, certain problems remain. Some court rulings issued after the publication of the Fifth Amendment have therefore gone beyond the amended Guidelines in favor of victims.

(The editors)