Germany ordered to pay $84.6 million in reparations to Jewish family

BERLIN, June 12, 2014 (AFP) - A Berlin tribunal on Thursday ordered Germany to pay 50 million euros (S$84.6 million) in reparations to the descendents of a Jewish family whose chain of department stores was seized by the Nazis.

The Schocken family lost several shops, mainly in the eastern region of Saxony, in 1938 during the Nazis' so-called "Aryanization" of German businesses, said a court statement.

Berlin's administrative tribunal ordered Germany to pay 30 million euros of compensation for the seizure as well as 20 million euros in interest.

The Schocken family received 30 million Deutsche Marks in the 1990s for the loss of a building in the eastern city of Chemnitz, which has been transformed into an archaeological museum.

The German state can appeal the decision before the federal administrative court based in Leipzig, the tribunal said in a statement.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.