Judgment of the Regional Court in Szczecin, 1st Civil Division, dated 21st December 2021
I C 990/18

1. However, the application of Article 417 of the Civil Code, as in effect prior to 1^st September 2004, must take into account the Constitutional Court’s judgment of 4^th December 2001, SK 18/00 (OTK 2001, No. 8, item 256), which ruled that Article 418 of the Civil Code is incompatible with Article 77 Section 1 of the Polish Constitution, and that Article 417 of the Civil Code, understood to mean that the State Treasury is liable for damage caused by the unlawful action of a state official in performing an act entrusted to him, is compatible with Article 77 Section 1 of the Polish Constitution. The underlying premise of this judgment was that the indicated provision of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland establishes a norm that ensures everyone’s right to compensation for damage caused by the unlawful action of a public authority. However, the content of Article 77 Section 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland is so vague that it does not provide a basis for deriving civil law claims from it. Therefore, it is reasonable to indicate Article 417 of the Civil Code in conjunction with Article 77 of the Polish Constitution as the legal basis.
2. The compensation claim that arises on the part of shareholders in the event of loss of share value due to bankruptcy is a lucrum cessans type of compensation claim, i.e. compensation for loss of the right to dividends. Shareholders, as a result of the bankruptcy (and consequently, during the bankruptcy proceedings), have (theoretically) lost their right to dividends. By contrast, the loss of share value is de facto damage to the company, not to the shareholders. The legal construction of the joint-stock company and the resulting indirect participation of the shareholder in its activities thus determine, among other things, that the damage caused to the company cannot at the same time be considered a damage suffered by the shareholder.

The Regional Court in Szczecin, 1^st Civil Division, composed of:

Presiding Judge:               Joanna Kitlowska-Moroz, Regional Court Judge

having recognized on 21^st December 2021 in Szczecin at a session in camera in group proceedings

the case brought by K. P. (1) against (…) for payment

1. dismisses the claim;
2. refrains from charging the plaintiff with the costs of legal representation due to the defendant;
3. charges the plaintiff with 100% of the unpaid court costs, leaving their detailed settlement to the court clerk.