solatium
Literal translation
consolation; solace
Legal meaning
In South African law, solatium refers to monetary compensation awarded for non-patrimonial harm, especially injured feelings, pain, suffering, or loss of amenities of life. The term is commonly encountered in delict and constitutional damages contexts, where the award serves as solace rather than reimbursement of measurable financial loss. Its precise scope depends on the cause of action and the nature of the right infringed.
Examples
- The plaintiff claimed solatium for pain and suffering arising from the assault.
- An award of solatium may be considered where dignity has been impaired by unlawful conduct.
- The court distinguished patrimonial loss from solatium for non-patrimonial injury.
Cases citing this term
- 🇿🇦 Welverdiend Community v Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform and OthersLand Claims Court of South Africa· 2025-03-26· LCC 75/2009
compensation in accordance with the defendant's Financial Compensation Policy, to further compensation, or solatium, for the trauma and humiliation suffered by the members of the community. The community seeks
- 🇿🇦 Rustenburg Local Municipality v Burrie Smit Ontwikkelaars (Pty) LtdSupreme Court of Appeal of South Africa· 2025-10-07· 236/2024
compensation determined by the court less than or equal to offer rejected – inclusion of solatium in compensation – apportionment of costs – compensation determined by court less than amount claimed by owner
- 🇿🇦 Total South Africa (Pty) Ltd v MeyerLabour Appeal Court of South Africa, Johannesburg· 2021-06-02· JA03/2020
years, and further, that the severance package received did not deprive him of the solatium to which he was entitled as a result of being dismissed unfairly. The facts
- 🇿🇦 Phil Skinner and 208 Others v Nampak Products Limited and Others
- 🇿🇦 Motladile v Minister of PoliceSupreme Court of Appeal of South Africa· 2023-06-12· 414/2022
Much as there are also different amounts awarded by this Court as compensation or solatium, there is of late an attempt to strive for similarity or conformity. Each case must
- 🇿🇦 Charles Mogale, Johnnic Publishing Limited & NAP Publications, and Allied Publishing Limited v Ephraim SeimaSupreme Court of Appeal of South Africa· 2005-11-14· 575/04
the plaintiff as compensation, either to vindicate his reputation or to act as a solatium. In general, a civil court, in a defamation case, awards damages to solace plaintiff
- 🇿🇦 Mmatlou Maria Moloantoa v CCMA and OthersLabour Court of South Africa, Polokwane· 2021-05-31· JR 1281/19
impairment of the employee's dignity. This monetary relief is referred to as a solatium and it constitutes a solace to provide satisfaction to an employee who's constitutionally protected
- 🇿🇦 Florence v The Government of the Republic of South AfricaSupreme Court of Appeal of South Africa· 2013-09-13· 550/12
awarded to the Florence family as a result of the dispossession in 1970, including solatium in respect of the hardship and suffering they experienced as a result of the dispossession
- 🇿🇦 Johannes Wynand Louw Hofmeyr v Andre Saaiman t/a SA Endovascular Group Practice
- 🇿🇦 Aphelele Mpiyonke v Minister of PoliceHigh Court of South Africa, Eastern Cape Division, Mthatha· 2025-08-12· 5405/2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA EASTERN CAPE DIVISION, MTHATHA Case
Live search across the public SA + ZW case corpus. Results may include false positives where the same Latin lexeme appears in a different context.