Written Form Requirement in Commercial Leases

Decision of the Dresden Higher Regional Court (OLG) of February 27, 2024 – Ref. 5 U 2077/23   In commercial lease agreements, it is essential to comply with formal requirements. For instance, a violation of the written form requirement may result in agreed-upon terms being unenforceable. This can mean that agreed notice periods may be […]

CJEU on Jurisdiction Agreements

Jurisdiction Agreement Without Additional Foreign Elements   On February 8, 2024, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that two contractual parties residing in the same EU member state can agree to the jurisdiction of a court in another EU member state, even if the contract otherwise has no connection to that […]

Trademark Law in Simultaneous Registration Cases

Judgment of the LG Hamburg from July 19, 2024 – Az.: 327 O 195/23   If you want to protect your trademark, you shouldn’t wait too long to register it. Otherwise, someone else might beat you to it. It can also happen that two parties register their trademark rights for a product on the same […]

Removal of a Shareholder-Director

OLG Munich on Removal for Important Reasons – Case No.: 23 W 354/23e   Even seemingly small errors in bookkeeping can be an important reason for the removal of a shareholder-director. This is evident from a ruling by the OLG Munich dated May 25, 2023 (Case No.: 23 W 354/23e). The removal of a director […]

Effective Gift of Savings Deposits

Judgment of the Regional Court of Koblenz on March 14, 2024 – Case No.: 3 O 457/23 The gifting of savings books can be effective even without an assignment declaration. This was decided by the Regional Court of Koblenz in a judgment on March 14, 2024 (Case No.: 3 O 457/23). Lifetime gifts are an […]

UniImmo Wohnen ZBI – Significant Losses for Investors

Open Real Estate Fund Devalued by Almost 17 Percent The open real estate fund UniImmo Wohnen ZBI has experienced a dramatic decline: Following a special evaluation, its value plummeted by nearly 17 percent, as reported online by “Handelsblatt” on June 27, 2024. For investors, this translates to a loss of around 860 million euros, suffered […]

Parental Support Only from an Income of 5,000 Euros

Decision of the Munich Higher Regional Court on March 6, 2024 – Case No.: 2 UF 1201/23 e Children are only obligated to support their parents if their average monthly net income is between 5,000 and 5,500 Euros. This was decided by the Munich Higher Regional Court in a ruling on March 6, 2024 (Case […]

Liability Due to Misleading Metadata

Misleading Search Engine Results – Website Operator Liable Companies that operate websites naturally want them to be easily found on the internet. Metadata on a website, such as title tags, help enhance its visibility to search engines like Google. However, business owners must consider that search engines might only display the results generated from this […]

Defects in the Building Must Be Reported at Acceptance

Decision by the Higher Regional Court of Oldenburg on July 17, 2023, Ref.: 12 U 214/19 In the construction of a property, the acceptance of the building is a critical date for the client. This is because the time of acceptance is crucial for determining whether defects exist and whether the construction company must remedy […]

Commercial Agent: Commission and Compensation Claims

Key Points to Regulate in a Commercial Agent Agreement Two essential points that should be regulated in a commercial agent agreement are the commission entitlement of the commercial agent and their compensation claim upon termination of the contract. These two points often lead to legal disputes between the commercial agent and the company. The commercial […]

Managing Director Liability and D&O Insurance

OLG Schleswig on the Assignment of the Indemnification Claim, Case No. 16 U 93/23 The assignment of an indemnification claim from a D&O insurance policy suspends the statute of limitations on the liability claim of the injured company. This was decided by the Schleswig-Holstein Higher Regional Court in its ruling on February 26, 2024 (Case […]

M&A – OLG Naumburg on Earn-Out Clauses

Contractual Regulation Takes Precedence After a corporate transaction such as the sale of business shares, disputes can arise between the buyer and seller even after the acquisition. The OLG Naumburg made an important decision in such a post-M&A dispute. In its ruling on June 26, 2023, it made clear that a contractual agreement in the […]

Self-Report for Breach of AWV Reporting Obligation

Reporting Obligation for International Capital Transactions For many companies, international trade relations and cross-border transactions are routine. However, international trade also entails various reporting obligations. Violations of these obligations can result in substantial fines. One way to address such violations is by submitting a self-report in accordance with the Foreign Trade and Payments Regulation (AWV). […]

Liability for Missing Cancellation Button

Sales Platform Must Ensure Cancellation Option Anyone offering subscriptions, training sessions, and similar services online must also ensure that a cancellation button is available on the same website. This requirement holds even if the website is not operated by the provider itself, but by an advertising partner. This was decided by the Hildesheim Regional Court […]

BVerfG Strengthens Rights of Biological Fathers

Judgment of the Federal Constitutional Court of April 9, 2024, Case No.: 1 BvR 2017/21 The Federal Constitutional Court has strengthened the rights of biological fathers with a ruling dated April 9, 2024 (Case No.: 1 BvR 2017/21). With this landmark decision, the constitutional judges opened the door for biological fathers to be recognized as […]

Withholding and Embezzlement of Wages

Proper Payment of Social Security Contributions With the conclusion of an employment contract, employers and employees enter into rights and obligations. Among the primary obligations of the employer is the payment of wages to its employees. This includes the proper payment of social security contributions for the employee. If the employer does not pay the […]

Suspicion of money laundering

Legal advice on suspicion of money laundering and account freezing The shock is just as great for businesses as it is for private clients: they want to make a transfer, pay a bill, and the bank is not cooperating. It has frozen the account due to suspicion of money laundering. This can have fatal consequences […]

Corporate insolvencies increased in 2023

Paths to corporate restructuring According to the Federal Statistical Office, the number of corporate insolvencies in Germany between January and September 2023 has risen by 24.7 percent. In absolute numbers, this means that 13,270 companies have filed for insolvency during this period. The increasing number of insolvencies, according to the law firm MTR Legal Attorneys, […]

ECJ declares member state’s domestic legislation compatible with EU law in antitrust case

Claims for damages in response to cross-border antitrust infringements EU law does not preclude the application of a national rule in cases concerned with anticompetitive practices. That was the verdict of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in a ruling from February 16, 2023 (case ref.: C-312/21). Where claims for damages aimed at addressing antitrust […]

Calculating damages for trademark infringements based on the license analogy principle

A license analogy is one way of calculating claims for damages in response to trademark infringements. If a registered trademark is violated, those concerned can turn to an IP lawyer for advice and assistance in enforcing and fending off claims. Fortunately, the protection of intellectual and industrial property is one of commercial law firm MTR […]