Måsøval Awarded NOK 2.3 Million in Reduced Compensation Over Misdiagnosis Case
Måsøval AS has been awarded NOK 2.3 million ($220,000) in compensation following a ruling by the Frostating Court of Appeal, significantly lower than the NOK 29.8 million ($2.8 million) the company originally sought. The case, which dates back to August 2019, involves the misdiagnosis of pancreatic disease (PD) at Måsøval’s Kattholmen site, resulting in the premature culling of 715,000 salmon.
In November 2022, the state acknowledged responsibility for the diagnostic error but disputed the financial losses claimed by Måsøval. While the district court had initially awarded the company NOK 12.8 million ($1.2 million), both parties appealed the ruling. The Court of Appeal has now issued a lower compensation amount and ordered Måsøval to cover legal costs.
CEO Helge Kvalvik expressed frustration with the decision: “We are disappointed with the court’s conclusions and disagree with them. We will carefully review the ruling and discuss it with our consultants before providing further comments.”