INTRODUCTION
In the Austrian Post case, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) threw out the proverbial baby with the bathwater, deciding that the concept of ‘non-material damage’ in Article 82 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) must be interpreted uniformly according to EU law. Prior to this, the concept was mostly decided by individual member states as a form of procedural autonomy, and member states enjoyed many options with regard to defining non-material damage. EU law sets just a few very broad boundaries on this concept: damage should be interpreted broadly, only actual and real damage may be compensated, and the principles of equivalence and effectiveness must be respected. The Austrian Post decision thus requires the development of new concepts of compensation and damage for GDPR infringements, which is a monumental task. Now, 3 years later, the concept is still not well developed …
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Stephan Mulders, Risk and fundamental rights infringements as a form of ‘damage’ per Article 82 GDPR, International Data Privacy Law. Published: 8 December 2025.
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