Symposium 'From Stint to Fipronil: a compensation fund for victims of energetic government intervention in crisis situations

Seminar

NL Law

Expertise

Public Law Environment and Planning Litigation and Arbitration Technology, Media and Telecommunications Infrastructure and Mobility

Stibbe is organising a symposium in Amsterdam on Thursday 7 November entitled 'From Stint to Fipronil: a compensation fund for victims of energetic government intervention in crisis situations'. During this symposium, Stibbe lawyer Tijn Kortmann and Prof. Pieter van Vollenhoven, alongside other experts, will speak about the compensation fund which, according to van Vollenhoven, injured parties should be able to call upon if a decision by the government turns out to be too drastic.

Date

11 October 2019

From Stint to Fipronil

In 2019, citizens expect the government to monitor their health and safety. The government must warn citizens of dangers and must prevent accidents and disasters through adequate supervision and energetic intervention. The government does this regularly; well-known recent examples include the warning concerning Fipronil-infected eggs, and the removal of the Stint from the road after the dramatic accident in Oss.

The government often intervenes when there is still great uncertainty about the actual risks to health and safety. With the adage 'prevention is better than cure' this can be justified, but what if afterwards it turns out that a cannon has been used to shoot a mosquito (or the wrong bear)? For example, the producer of eggs, or the manufacturer of the Stint and their customers, can try to recover the damage from the government, but many requirements have to be met for government liability. Moreover, the road to government liability is long and costly.

The Van Vollenhoven compensation fund

Prof. Pieter van Vollenhoven, former chairman of the OVV, is of the opinion that innocent victims in such a case should be able to appeal to a compensation fund that is generous in its approach. Can a compensation fund indeed provide a solution for cases of this kind, and if so, when is a compensation fund a suitable instrument? Who should take the initiative for such a compensation fund and what criteria and procedures should apply to compensation from such a fund?