Japan: Executives found liable for £81.4bn in damages over Fukushima disaster

The case marks the first time individuals have been found guilty over the nuclear disaster.

It was brought by a group of 48 shareholders against five senior executives at the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco). The plaintiffs argued that the management had failed to take the proper precautions against a tsunami hitting the plant.

Four of the executives were found liable: former chairman Tsunehisa Katsumata, 82; chief executive and president from 2008 to 2011, Masataka Shimizu, 78; and two former vice presidents, Ichiro Takekuro, 76, and Sakae Muto, 72.

A fifth – Akio Komori, 69, director of the Fukushima plant in 2011 – was found not to have been liable.

On 11 March 2011, Japan recorded its most powerful ever earthquake. It caused a tsunami that led to the Fukushima nuclear disaster as all three reactors went into meltdown after the cooling systems were flooded.

“All technology is at risk for human error. But nuclear power plants can cause irreparable damage to human lives and the environment,” the plaintiffs said in a statement following the ruling.

“Executives for firms that operate such nuclear plants bear enormous responsibility, which cannot compare with that of other companies.”

The case was brought in March 2021 but has taken more than a decade to complete and an appeal has already been made to the Tokyo High Court.

Under the terms of the case, the plaintiffs will not obtain damages, which are the highest ever awarded by a Japanese court. The suit was a shareholder derivative action, which sees shareholders force a company to sue its directors. Damages will go to Tepco itself.

Hiroyuki Kawai, lawyer for the shareholders, said: “We realise that 13 trillion yen is well beyond their capacity to pay.” He added that the men would pay as much as their assets permitted.

Tepco said in a statement: “We again express our heartfelt apology to people in Fukushima and members of society broadly for causing trouble and worry” with the disaster.”