Neurological complications of COVID-19? Court cannot find expert

The case concerns a 19-year-old resident of Ostrzeszów County, who is seeking PLN 201,000 in compensation for complications following vaccination against Covid-19. According to the teenager, she experienced neurological complications immediately after the vaccination, which affected her life. She claims that she cannot function normally, feels depressed, sad, anxious and lonely because she avoids socializing. She believes that her health problems are a result of a complication after the vaccination.

No expert, case suspended
The civil trial in the Kalisz District Court began in December last year. The defendant in the case is the State Treasury – the Minister of Health, represented by the Office of the Minister of Justice of the Republic of Poland. The State Treasury participated in the implementation of the national vaccination program. At the request of the plaintiff's lawyer, the case is being held in camera.

The State Treasury requested that the case be dismissed. It referred to other entities whose liability should be considered, such as the manufacturer, the medical facility or the person administering the drug.

According to the Treasury, COVID-19 vaccines were a completely voluntary service, and there was no legal mechanism for mandatory vaccination. "The National Vaccination Program was adopted by a resolution of the Council of Ministers, which is not a source of generally applicable law; it is exclusively internal in nature and applies to organizational units subordinate to the Council of Ministers," the statement stressed in its response to the lawsuit. According to the court, the case is complex in content, requires specialized knowledge in law and medicine, and is multifaceted. For example, it was pointed out that Pfizer's product characteristics include 730 A4 pages of highly specialized knowledge.

In the case, the parties to the case were heard, and the evidence was supplemented by obtaining information from the Office for Registration of Medicinal Products, Medical Devices and Biocidal Products.

As Judge Marek Urbaniak informed PAP, the case has stalled at the stage where the causal link between the plaintiff's illnesses and the vaccination must be established. “First, the parties’ attorneys were required to nominate a candidate expert in neurology who met the criteria of no conflict of interest, appropriate level of knowledge, education, and professional experience. Neither party did so, leaving it up to the court,” Urbaniak said. He added that the Treasury Attorney had identified a group of entities that would not be appointed as experts in this case and suggested a research institute that could provide an opinion.

“The court filed a request with the designated institute, but it was denied, so there are still no established entities providing opinions,” the judge emphasized.