News
975 articles
17 September 2014
Taxi vs. Uber: Court quashes interim injunction!
The Regional Court (LG) Frankfurt am Main had initially prohibited the US start-up Uber by way of interim injunction from mediating passenger transport requests via its apps. The Regional Court has now set aside its decision due to lack of urgency.
Read more16 September 2014
Advertising Council adopts new code of conduct
The Advertising Council has updated its code of conduct against degradation and discrimination of persons, which was established in 1980. In doing so, the Advertising Council also took into account the new categories of cases that have been presented in its decision-making practice.
Read more15 September 2014
Companies must be reachable by email
What exactly is the statutory obligation for companies to provide an email address for contact and communication purposes? The Regional Court (LG) Berlin has commented on this matter.
Read more13 September 2014
Prohibition of online sales not permissible
May a manufacturer of branded goods prohibit the retailers supplied by it from selling the goods via the Internet within the framework of a selective distribution system? The Regional Court (LG) Frankfurt/Main had to address this question.
Read more12 September 2014
Advertising slogan "Wash & Coffee" too unoriginal
The Court of General Court (EuG) had to address the question of whether the advertising slogan "Wash & Coffee" for an unusual service concept, namely the combination of a laundromat with a catering establishment, is capable of protection as a trade mark.
Read more11 September 2014
Mother liable for file sharing due to lack of supervision!
The Local Court (AG) Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt has, in a recently issued decision, set aside the current case law of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) and convicted a mother under the liability of disturbers for offering a computer game on the Internet, since the judge was of the opinion that the line holder must have supervised her son's Internet usage.
Read more10 September 2014
No liability of the connection holder in case of security vulnerability
The holder of an internet connection is not liable for a copyright infringement committed via his connection, provided there is a possibility that unauthorized third parties have gained access to his internet connection via a security vulnerability in the WLAN router and have committed the infringing act.
Read more09 September 2014
Ritter Sport wins again against Stiftung Warentest
The second instance in the chocolate dispute is now decided. The Higher Regional Court Munich (OLG München) confirmed today that Stiftung Warentest may no longer claim that Ritter Sport uses an artificial vanilla flavour instead of the stated natural vanilla flavour for its full nut chocolate.
Read more09 September 2014
One payment is sufficient
In the case of undertakings to cease and desist with contractual penalty promises given by a company and its organ (here a managing director), if a breach occurs which is attributable to the company, only one contractual penalty is incurred. The company and its organ are jointly and severally liable for this contractual penalty.
Read more08 September 2014
Six-star hotel misleading?
The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Celle had to decide whether a luxury hotel may award itself six stars or whether such a classification of the hotel may only be made by an independent third party with appropriate expertise according to objective assessment criteria.
Read more06 September 2014
Are dash cams permitted?
Is it permitted to use in-car cameras (dash cams) that record the entire traffic situation in order to preserve evidence? The Local Court (AG) Munich had to decide on the admissibility of the recorded footage as evidence.
Read more05 September 2014
Private copying of unpublished photos permitted
The reproduction of protected works for private use, which is permitted under copyright law, also applies to unpublished works. Accordingly, unpublished portrait photographs may be scanned and stored for private purposes.
Read more03 September 2014
Jurisdiction agreement in cease-and-desist declaration
Do serious doubts about the genuineness of a competition law cease-and-desist declaration arise when an infringer based abroad refuses to agree to German jurisdiction for the enforcement of contractual penalty claims? The Court of Appeal (Kammergericht) Berlin recently had to decide on this.
Read more01 September 2014
Attorney and Master Fraudster! – Permitted?
May an attorney, relying on the principle of procedural privilege, accuse his opposing counsel in written pleadings of "commercial litigation fraud" and call him a "master fraudster"? The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Frankfurt a.M. recently had to decide whether this constitutes impermissible defamatory criticism.
Read more27 August 2014
Trade mark "VITA" for insurance descriptive?
In the context of an appeal procedure, the Federal Patent Court had to decide whether the Federal Patent Office had rightly refused the registration of the sign "VITA" for insurance services.
Read more25 August 2014
Ghostwriter must hand over Kohl tape recordings
The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Cologne had to decide in the context of an appeal proceeding whether a journalist retains decision-making authority over the content of tape recordings and their use after termination of the ghostwriter contractual relationship, or whether these rights lie solely with the person interviewed.
Read more22 August 2014
Misleading advertising only if advertising prominence?
The Federal Court of Justice (BGH) had to decide the legal question whether advertising with commonplaces can also be misleading and thus anticompetitive if such commonplace was not highlighted in particular in the advertising.
Read more21 August 2014
Precise specification of hosting location
Is it required to specify in advertising which company exactly operates the data centre when hosting uses servers of group companies? The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Düsseldorf had to decide on this matter.
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