Appeals court overturns 186,000 euro injury compensation for port worker due to statute of limitations

The Cyprus Supreme Court has overturned a lower court decision that had awarded 186,308.71 euros in damages to a dockworker injured during a ship unloading operation at the Limassol port. The incident occurred on June 29, 2006, when the worker was severely injured by iron bundles. Although the Limassol District Court initially held Amathus Aegeas Ltd liable in 2017, the appellate court ruled that the lawsuit filed on December 30, 2009, was submitted after the expiration of the mandatory three-year statute of limitations.

The appellate judges rejected the company's challenges regarding the court's initial jurisdiction as a maritime case, confirming that the legal proceedings were appropriate in nature. However, the court found that the plaintiff failed to procedurally justify any interruption of the limitation period based on previous filings. Consequently, the 2017 ruling was set aside and replaced with a stay of proceedings, meaning the worker lost the awarded compensation, including interest and legal costs. This decision marks the conclusion of a legal battle that spanned over two decades, focusing exclusively on procedural limitations rather than the merits of the liability findings.