A court condemns Desokupa for violating a man's right to image on social networks

A ruling has just hit the foundation on which Desokupa's business is based: social media. The company, dedicated to extrajudicial evictions, has been ordered to pay 5,899 euros for violating a person's right to image through Instagram and Facebook to advertise its own business. The Court of First Instance number 42 of Barcelona maintains that the social networks where they advertise «the successes» of the company run by Daniel Esteve «do not have a mere informative purpose.» In reality, they contribute «to the publicity of the brand» and, therefore, «to the acquisition of potential future clients.» The resolution, which is not yet final, also orders the removal from social media of the videos in which the complainant appears. The case begins in January 2022, when Desokupa intervenes in an occupied warehouse in Cornellà de Llobregat, hired by the owner. An action that Esteve announced through his social networks. Aware of the situation, the complainant, Shervin Mansouri Guilani, went to support the people involved in the forced eviction, as reported by Nació Digital. Desokupa recorded its performance in Cornellà, where Mansouri appeared, without his explicit or tacit consent, and spread the video on Instagram and Facebook. The court notes that it had at least 75,800 views on Instagram, 227,000 on Facebook, more than 8,000 likes and 2,100 comments until January 14, 2022. More information In its defense, Desokupa maintains that it “does not monetize” its activity on social networks and assures that it is advertised through other means. But the judge maintains that “none of them” has been “contributed to the procedure, beyond a website, of whose existence little knowledge could be had without a prior dissemination activity that puts it on the market”. The court also does not accept Esteve's attempt to disassociate his social networks from the Desokupa company. The court ruling reviews all the arguments for which Esteve's social networks are also those of Desokupa: the account nickname (desokupa), the definition of the profile —»Desokupa by Dani Esteve, a company specialising in the intermediation of illegally occupied flats»— and the company's contact telephone number. The court also reviews how Esteve reported the action in Cornellà de Llobregat, with, according to its criteria, comments published «by the company itself» in which «an action in the interest» of the company is evident. In the same lawsuit, the complainant, defended by the lawyer Bernat Barceló, argued an intrusion into his right to honour. Esteve referred on his networks to an action against «a group of hippies», whom he defined as «bugs» and «little rats» and accused them of threatening neighbours. “Let the hunger games begin!” ended the text published alongside the video. In this case, the ruling argues that the text does not mention the complainant, nor does it address him unequivocally, nor does it label him, and so it rejects his claim. Regarding the amount, the court considers that the amount of 5,899 euros claimed by the plaintiff is in accordance with the law, which is based on the rates it would cost to make an advertising video of this type. It also points out that at no time has Desokupa presented any “counter-evidence or allegation” in relation to the amount demanded by the complainant. The video is still posted on social networks, as this newspaper has been able to verify. The ruling is not yet final and the company can appeal the judicial decision. What affects most is what happens closer to home. To not miss anything, subscribe. CONTINUE READINGDesokupa has returned to the media spotlight these days after placing a banner in the centre of Madrid in which it attacks the current Government. In the municipal elections, he also stirred up a conflict that had not existed until then with a squatted premises in the Bonanova neighbourhood, in the upper part of Barcelona, ​​and called for several demonstrations in the city, with low participation. In 2021, Esteve tried again through a banner to gain media coverage in the heat of an election: in this case, those called in May of that year by the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso. At that time, the advertising strategy had little media coverage. You can follow EL PAÍS Catalunya on Facebook and Twitter. Twitteror sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter