Occult Compensation is, in the Catholic tradition, the extra-legal taking of goods from a person who has refused to meet the demands of justice, for a value equivalent to the loss or damage inflicted.
Background
Occult compensation is a demand in
commutative justice and deducible from the principle of self-defense. It is open to all manner of abuses, but the utter denial of it gives the weak no
redress against the oppression of the strong.
Catholics believe that occult compensation is justifiable only when
# The right of the creditor is certain
# No recourse to the law is possible or feasible
If the debtor or his heirs later make redress,
restitution
Restitution and unjust enrichment is the field of law relating to gains-based recovery. In contrast with damages (the law of compensation), restitution is a claim or remedy requiring a defendant to give up benefits wrongfully obtained. Liability ...
is necessary. Reasonable efforts must be made to prevent
scandal
A scandal can be broadly defined as the strong social reactions of outrage, anger, or surprise, when accusations or rumours circulate or appear for some reason, regarding a person or persons who are perceived to have transgressed in some way a ...
.
References
External links
''Catholic Encyclopedia'' "Occult Compensation"
Christian ethics
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