Widows Take Chapecoense Soccer Team to Court for Compensatory Damage

03/10/2017 - 11h50

At least five widows of Brazilian soccer team Chapecoense players killed in an airplane crash in Colombia in November 2016, shortly before the final match of the Copa Sul-Americana tournament, have taken action to take the team to labor court.

They want the amounts referring to rewards and image rights in the compensatory damage they received to be reviewed.

Valdécia Borges de Morais Paiva, the widow of defending midfielder Gil, was the first to begin proceedings, along with Gil's daughters - the case was filed in the second week of February.

They also demand moral damage to be included in the compensation and pensions.

The other widows who intend to take Chapecoense to court are the ex-wives of strikers Bruno Rangel, Canela and Ananias and of full back Gimenez. However, they do not have all the documents to continue with proceedings yet.

Chapecoense paid recissory funds and insurance shortly after the airplane crash that killed 71 people, among them 19 of its players. After agreements with the families, the days worked in the month of November, Christmas bonuses and proportional vacation were paid, as well as image rights.

The legal vice president of Chapecoense, Luiz Antônio Palaoro, said that the calculations of the image rights are made based on the amount officially paid in the players' labor cards. Palaoro also said that the team cannot be held responsible for the accident because it did not cause the airplane to crash.

Translated by THOMAS MUELLO

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