How can I file a claim for compensation for non-pecuniary damage if a company has violated my personal boundaries and disclosed confidential information without my consent? Are there effective ways to prove the psychological discomfort caused and the amount of compensation, given the lack of material damages? Please share your personal experiences or cases from your legal practice.
Let's put everything in order so that you understand how to act.
1. We collect the "dossier" and fix the boundaries. First, you need to clearly record exactly what happened. If you have screenshots of correspondence, call recordings, letters, or witnesses, save everything. The claim should describe exactly what information was disclosed and why it violated your personal boundaries (for example, it was information about your health, family, and financial situation). If the company signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with you, this is your main trump card. If not, it doesn't matter, we have a Constitution and a law on personal data.
2. We prove psychological discomfort. That's where the fun begins. The absence of "material losses" is not a verdict. Moral harm is suffering, humiliation, fear, and insomnia.
- Medical documents. If you have high blood pressure or insomnia due to stress, run to the doctor. A certificate from a therapist or neurologist with an entry "against the background of severe stress" in the medical history is already a serious argument.
- Psychologist or psychotherapist. This is the strongest move. Make an appointment. Tell the specialist everything as it is. The main thing is to get a conclusion that you have signs of psychological distress (anxiety, depression) caused by a specific incident. The judges treat this with great respect.
- The witnesses. If you've complained to friends or family about how bad you feel after this incident, let them testify. Their words that you've changed, become nervous or withdrawn are also taken into account.
3. The amount of compensation: how not to make it cheap. In Russia, there are no clear formulas for calculating moral damage. The judge looks at "reasonableness and fairness." You can't just write "I want a million." It is necessary to justify the amount.
- A real-life example (personal experience): I had a friend whose medical record was mistakenly sent to another person. He didn't lose a single ruble, but he was under a lot of stress. He brought to court a psychiatric certificate about panic attacks and the testimony of two colleagues that he had not been able to work properly for a week. As a result, the court awarded him 150,000 rubles. The amount is not cosmic, but it is a real result.
- How to count? Look at the practice in your region for similar cases (data leakage, defamation). Usually the amounts range from 30-50 thousand to 200-300 thousand rubles, depending on the severity of the consequences and the fame of the company. The larger the infringing company, the higher the amount of the fine may be for the very fact of violating the law on personal data.
4. How do I file a claim? Go to a good civil lawyer. Describe the situation in detail in the statement of claim.: what kind of company, when and what exactly happened (date-time), what rights were violated (right to privacy), what evidence do you have. And be sure to attach all medical certificates and receipts for medicines (even if they were bought with your own money).
Don't expect an apology. Large companies often behave this way before the first serious lawsuit. Your task is not so much to enrich yourself at their expense (although this is a nice bonus), as to show them and others that this is not the way to do it. And if you prove the fact of the violation and your suffering, the court will side with you.