Monetary compensation for non-material damage caused by violation of the presumption of innocence in media reporting

Marjanović, Đorđe (2024) Monetary compensation for non-material damage caused by violation of the presumption of innocence in media reporting. In: Causation of damage, damage compensation and insurance : Proceedings from XXVII international scientific conference. Institute of Comparative Law, Belgrade; Valjevo, pp. 255-272. ISBN 978-86-82582-21-2

Text 2024 - ONŠ - Marjanović.pdf - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (266kB)

Abstract

The Criminal Procedure Code contains the norm by which it is prescribed the public information media are among the entities that are obliged to respect the presumption of innocence. Although the legislator sought to ensure the presumption of innocence as a guarantee of the procedural rights of the accused, lawmaker did not prescribe the consequences of its immediate violation. The author deals with the question of whether an individual has the right to compensation for non-material damages if that right is violated. In the first part of the paper, the author concludes that the presumption of innocence can be considered a personal right, which enjoys civil protection. In the further part of the paper, the author emphasizes that the violation of the presumption of innocence is not a sufficient condition for individuals to realize the right to monetary compensation for non-material damage. In accordance with the accepted subjective concept of non-material damage, it is necessary that there is a violation of the right to the presumption of innocence, that the person must suffer psychological stress of sufficient intensity and that there is a causal connection. The author, with examples from court practice, points to the inconsistent acceptance of this concept of non-material damage in procedures for compensation for damages due to the violation of the presumption of innocence by means of public communication. In the second part of the paper, the author analyzes the criteria for determining the amount of monetary compensation. Since the legal standards are set by law, the author tends to illustrate how judicial practice specifies these criteria in cases concerning the compensation of non-material damages caused by the violation of the presumption of innocence by the public information media. The author criticizes the entrenched depersonalized approach in determining the compensation amount in these cases, considering it does not fully correspond to the harm suffered by the person sustaining damage.

Actions (login required)

View Item