Only in 2014, after the proceedings before the Court of Cassation in the criminal section, can the Court of Appeal proceed to settle the civil claims in this case. This concerns the compensation for investors, people who had bought shares of L&H and lost their money.
At the start of registration, there were 15,414 civil parties. Jo Lernout’s lawyer informs them at the start of the trial that Lernout and the other convicted drivers can’t get a cent anymore. And there is in principle nothing to be gained from the other (large) parties with deep pockets, such as auditor KMPG and house banker Dexia, because they were acquitted in 2010 by the Ghent criminal court. The consultancy firms Deminor and SQ Law, which assist large groups of victims, are still targeting KPMG, because they believe that the company is responsible for a convicted KPMG employee. But the appeals court rules that only six former L&H directors, including Lernout and Hauspie, are eligible to pay damages.
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