South Korean fishermen v. TEPCO awarded compensation for nuclear effluent discharge

The Seoul Central District Court in South Korea recently issued a final judgment, finding that the discharge of nuclear effluent by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) had a substantial negative impact on South Korea’s coastal fishery resources and marine environment, and ruled that TEPCO should pay financial compensation to South Korean fishermen. This is the first time since the Fukushima nuclear accident that a Japanese company has lost a case in an overseas court due to nuclear contamination.