5.  The applicant, Mr Piotr Budnik, is a Polish national who was born in 1980 and lives in Leszno.
The circumstances of the case 6.  The facts of the case were not in dispute and may be summarised as follows. 7.  The applicant was detained in Łowicz Prison from 27 January 2007 to 19 April 2009 (2 years, 2 months and 22 days). 8.  The applicant submitted that throughout his detention in Łowicz Prison he had been held in overcrowded cells in which the space per person had been below the Polish statutory minimum standard of 3 sq. m. 9.  The domestic courts established, without giving any further details, that the applicant had been detained in overcrowded cells during various unspecified periods from 27 January 2007 to 19 April 2009. The overcrowding led to many quarrels between the prisoners as the tables did not have enough space for everybody. 10.  The applicant was placed in a solitary confinement cell for fourteen days as part of a disciplinary measure, where the toilet was not separated from the living space. 11.  In reply, The Government submitted that the applicant had been held in solitary confinement owing to a need to monitor his behaviour. The number of stools and beds in all cells matched the number of inmates. All the cells were equipped with ventilation and heating systems. The applicant was entitled to one hot shower per week and one hour of outdoor exercise per day. 12.  On 12 May 2009 the applicant, represented by a legal aid lawyer, brought a civil action over an infringement of his personal rights on account of the inadequate living conditions in Łowicz Prison from 27 January 2007 to 19 April 2009. The applicant argued that he had been detained in overcrowded cells with space that was below the statutory minimum. He claimed 100,000 Polish zlotys (PLN) (approximately 25,000 euros (EUR)) in compensation. 13.  On 20 July 2012 the Łódź Regional Court (Sąd Okregowy) granted the applicant PLN 3,000 (EUR 750) in compensation and dismissed the remainder of his claim. The domestic court found that the applicant had been detained in overcrowded cells from 27 January 2007 to 19 April 2009. Moreover, he had been detained in a solitary confinement cell as a disciplinary punishment for fourteen days. 14.  On 1 March 2013 the Łódź Court of Appeal (Sąd Apelacyjny) amended the above judgment, increased the compensation to PLN 7,000 (approximately EUR 1,750) and dismissed the remainder of the action.