A lawsuit has been filed with the Polish Court against Ringier Axel Springer Polska (RASP) with a claim for payment of over PLN 54 million. The lawsuit is the result of the refusal to pay a contractual penalty resulting from the delay in the implementation of the provisions of the Settlement signed by the Publishing House in 2020 with Robert Szustkowski.
In August this year, the entrepreneur and philanthropist – Robert Szustkowski – called on the RASP publishing house (publisher of Newsweek Polska, Onet, Fakt, among others) to pay a contractual penalty of over PLN 50 million. This was a consequence of the delay in the implementation by the Publisher of the provisions of the bilateral Settlement from 2020. According to it, the Publisher undertook to permanently remove publications that violated (in the years 2016-2018) the dignity and good name of Robert Szustkowski. Due to the refusal to pay the penalty, the case finally went to court. The case is handled by Attorney Elżbieta Kosińska – Kozak from the Dubois and Partners Law Firm.
The claim for payment of a fine of over PLN 54 million results directly from the provisions of the Settlement Agreement. Considering previous judgments and cases before the Polish justice system, the amount may turn out to be the highest property claim in history, in a case for the removal of the effects of a violation of personal rights.
The settlement, concluded in October 2020, was a consequence of a judgment of the Polish Court favorable to Robert Szustkowski. A ruling confirmed that his personal rights in the form of good name and dignity had been violated by publishing unreliable and unverified information in various RASP titles. The bilateral Settlement Agreement was to end the legal dispute that had been ongoing since 2017. It was the result of a series of articles published by RASP journalists. They conducted systematic activities aimed at undermining Szustkowski’s credibility. Publications full of insinuations and suggestions regarding the businessman’s alleged unclear connections with Russia gradually grew, leading to escalation in the form of media attacks and social ostracism.
The Settlement concluded in 2020 was intended to eliminate the effects of the infringement of Szustkowski’s personal rights as well as prevent further ones. However, this did not happen: the information originally published by RASP is still repeated in the media and even in RASP itself. “If RASP had properly executed the 2020 settlement by permanently eliminating the effects of the infringement of my personal rights, as well as fulfilled the guarantee to prevent further infringement, my image would not have been completely ruined” – emphasizes Robert Szustkowski.
Pejorative press materials published for many years in many titles have perpetuated the negative image of Robert Szustkowski as a Russian agent of influence – an accusation that is particularly painful in the current realities of the war in Ukraine. The result of these slanders was, among others, the need to withdraw investments from Poland, closing down the activities of the charitable foundation, cutting off from social life, health problems and the need to protect his own safety and that of his family. His son is currently also struggling with accusations of unclear ties to Russia, which seriously affects his professional and family life.
The purpose of the Settlement with RASP was – in addition to an apology and payment of the agreed amount for a charitable purpose – to limit the scale of violations of Szustkowski’s personal rights and to increase the responsibility of the Publishers for the reliability of the published content. Other publishers have also concluded settlements with Robert Szustkowski or published corrections regarding violations of his personal rights in the scope of alleged, unclear ties to Russia.
Pacta sunt servanda.
* Lawsuit filed with the Polish Court on 19.12.2024.
