Man injured by stray cat receives 240,000 yuan compensation

A Shanghai man has been awarded compensation of around 240,000 yuan (US$33,363) after he was tripped by a stray cat when playing badminton, thepaper.cn reported on Tuesday.

The incident occurred when the man surnamed Wu was playing on a court in Minhang District on April 23 last year. Jumping up for a smash shot, he landed on the cat, causing him to fall and get injured. A hospital assessment showed his injuries constituted a level-10 disability, the lightest in China's disability rating system.

The stray cat was being looked after by the defendant, surnamed Xiao, an employee of the company operating the court and also a coach there, according to a witness surnamed Lin, a full-time coach at the court.

On February 2, the Minhang District People's Court ordered Xiao to pay compensation of 240,198.20 yuan. The company operating the court would bear responsibility for the portion that Xiao couldn't pay.

Xiao argued he was not present when the incident occurred. The evidence provided by the plaintiff did not prove any relation between his injury and the cat, he said. He also claimed he did not own the cat, and even if he did feed stray cats, he shouldn't be considered the owner due to his inability to control or manage the animal.

Despite this, the court determined that the cause of the plaintiff's injury was stepping on the cat while playing badminton, and the cat was being kept by Xiao based on the testimony of several witnesses. Hence, Wu's request for compensation was approved.

Under China's Civil Code, where a domesticated animal causes damage to a person, the keeper or custodian of the animal is liable.