Italian Supreme Court confirms approach to damage determination in image rights cases
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all? When it comes to the violation of one's own image rights, what damages can be awarded? Is it just the damage due to the moral prejudice caused or also damages for the economic prejudice suffered by the person whose rights have been violated? Does the fact that the claimant ruled out any possibility for third parties to use their image influence at all the identification of what damages are due, eg because there is no actual market for the licensing of the claimant's image? These are all issues that the Italian Supreme Court recently considered in a case ( sentenza 1875/19 ) concerning the violation of a well-known actor's image rights. Unsurprisingly, the court confirmed its earlier approach that, when it comes to image rights violations, the damage that can be compensated is both of a moral and economic nature. Let's see how the court reasoned. Background The Milan Cour...