Kim Kardashian was awarded 1 euro in damages for being the target of an armed heist in 2016 at the Hôtel de Pourtalès in Paris, where she was robbed of millions in jewelry.
A Paris court awarded the symbolic $1.15 to Kardashian on Tuesday, just weeks shy of the 10th anniversary of the armed robbery. According to lawyers familiar with the case, per the Associated Press, the “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” star requested the modest payout as a form of closure.
Last year, the court found the ringleader, Aomar Aït Khedache, and seven other individuals guilty for their roles in the heist. The robbers were nicknamed by French media “les papys braqueurs,” or “the grandpa robbers” — most were in their 60s or 70s when they were tried on armed robbery, kidnapping, gang association and other charges, according to the AP.
In a joint statement with stylist Simone Harouche, the reality star thanked the French justice system and said she hoped to move past the harrowing ordeal and continue to heal.
“The experience was deeply traumatic, and its impact has stayed with us. Today’s decision is not about the compensation, but about accountability and recognition,” the statement read.
According to the AP, a former receptionist at the Hôtel de Pourtalès, where the fashion mogul was staying when she was robbed, was awarded the equivalent of $126,472 in the civil damages ruling. The hotel was awarded the equivalent of $57,741. And Kardashian’s stylist, Harouche, who was staying with Kardashian and locked herself in a bathroom to text the reality star’s bodyguard, also was awarded 1 euro, the amount she requested.
Kardashian isn’t the first high-profile star in recent history to ask a court for a symbolic payout.
In 2015, former radio DJ David Mueller sued Taylor Swift, seeking $3 million for defamation after he was fired when she told his bosses he had groped her butt under her skirt during a meet and greet. Swift countersued for sexual assault and battery, asking for $1 in damages. She won.
And in 2023, Gwyneth Paltrow was awarded $1 in a countersuit after retired optometrist Terry Sanderson sued the actor and Goop mogul for negligence. He claimed that Paltrow skied out of control and slammed into him, causing four broken ribs and permanent brain damage. Paltrow said Sanderson was the one who crashed into her back. Paltrow won and, rather than collect attorney’s fees from Sanderson, accepted the $1 payout and wished Sanderson well.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
