The appeal hearing was held this summer from June 13-20, with the verdict of the Frostating Court of Appeal issued on September 19.
Photo: Måsøval AS / Sondre Marøy.
Måsøval's legal tussle with the Norwegian State has yielded "disappointing" results this week for the company - a court win which nevertheless carries a high price tag.
While upholding the verdict in favour of the salmon farming company, the court decided the compensation level from the Norwegian state was set too high. The judgement reduced the total from NOK 12.8 million (USD 1.22m/ EUR 1.09m) to NOK 2.3 million (USD 220,000 / EUR 196,000), in addition to ordering Måsøval to pay legal costs.
Background to the case
Måsøval has been embroiled in a legal claim against Norwegian authorities for a number of years now, after a "misdiagnosis" of pancreas disease at one of its fish farms in 2019. The company claimed compensation of NOK 29.8 million (USD 2.84m / EUR 2.54m) from the Norwegian government for losses incurred by the error.
In December 2023, a Norwegian court found in favour of the salmon producer, ordering the Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries to pay out NOK 12.8 million in compensation.
However, the Norwegian state appealed the verdict on 2 February 2024, and Måsøval followed suit shortly afterwards, filing an independent appeal in the case, submitted on 5 February 2024.
Legal gambit backfires
The appeal hearing was held this summer from June 13-20, with the verdict of the Frostating Court of Appeal issued on September 19.
Måsøval's decision to appeal has backfired, however, as while the appeal court upheld the company's claim against Norwegian authorities for misdiagnosis, it slashed the level of compensation by over NOK 10 million, with Måsøval also handed the bill for the legal costs.
"We are disappointed with the court's conclusions and disagree with them," said Måsøval CEO Helge Kvalvik, in a press release. "We will carefully review the ruling and discuss it with our consultants before providing further comments."