A high court on Thursday upheld a lower court ruling that ordered the city of Higashimatsushima in Miyagi Prefecture to pay ¥26.5 million ($238,000) in damages to the family of a schoolgirl killed by the March 2011 tsunami.
The Sendai High Court recognized that city-run Nobiru Elementary School, to which the 9-year-old girl had evacuated, was partly to blame for her death. However, it rejected a similar claim by the family of an 86-year-old woman who died from tsunami at the same school, which was a designated evacuation site.
Ever since the mega-quake and tsunami of March 11, 2011, a slew of lawsuits have been filed against administrators of schools or companies. The latest ruling marks the first time a high court has held an administrator responsible for those killed by the disasters.