A clear procedural plan for your business dispute
horak Rechtsanwälte assists businesses with German civil litigation, administrative proceedings and domestic or international arbitration. We assess the claim, evidence, deadlines and commercial objective, then plan the appropriate court or arbitral route together with enforcement and costs.
Civil litigation and arbitration
Choose the issue closest to your dispute. Each guide explains preparation, procedural risks and four practical situations.
Defending a civil claim in Germany
Receiving a claim requires an immediate review of service, the court’s directions and the applicable deadlines.
Recovering debts and contractual claims
An unpaid invoice is the starting point, not the whole case.
Interim injunctions and attachment in Germany
Some disputes cannot wait for a full trial.
Domestic and international arbitration
An arbitration agreement determines whether a commercial dispute is to be decided by a private tribunal.
Shareholder disputes and directors‘ liability
A shareholder dispute can threaten the business while legal proceedings are still being prepared.
Post-M&A disputes: warranties, price adjustments and indemnities
Disputes after a business acquisition often arise from warranties, completion accounts, earn-outs or indemnities.
Supply contracts, machinery and plant disputes
Technical disputes need a clear connection between contractual requirements, actual performance and proof.
IP, licensing and IT disputes
Technology disputes combine procedural strategy with detailed technical and contractual questions.
Cross-border litigation and enforcement
An international dispute requires separate answers on jurisdiction, applicable law, service, evidence and enforcement.
Preserving evidence and using technical experts
Evidence may disappear before a claim is ready.
Enforcing judgments and arbitral awards
Winning a case does not automatically produce payment.
Litigation strategy, costs and settlement
A sound litigation decision combines legal prospects with commercial priorities.
German civil courts: first instance, appeal and BGH
The first-instance court and available appeal route should be assessed before proceedings begin.
Preparing pleadings, hearings and evidence
A case is not decided solely by presentation at the hearing.
Payment orders and default judgments
A payment order, enforcement order and default judgment require different responses.
Court settlements: payment, security and enforceability
A settlement should end the dispute with obligations that can actually be implemented.
Administrative litigation
Eight guides cover challenges to decisions, permits, interim relief and the different court levels. The remedy and enforcement position must be assessed together.
Administrative litigation: procedure and court levels
Businesses may need judicial protection against regulatory decisions, refusals of permits, public charges or administrative inaction.
Challenging administrative decisions and filing objections
When a decision arrives, preserve the full document, attachments and evidence of notification.
Obtaining permits and addressing administrative inaction
A delayed or refused permit can block an investment.
Urgent relief before the administrative courts
An administrative challenge and protection against immediate consequences are different tasks.
Planning, environmental disputes and review of local rules
Planning and environmental proceedings often combine substantial technical evidence with tight investment schedules.
Business licences, professional regulation and prohibitions
Regulatory restrictions can affect a business’s ability to continue operating.
Grant recovery, funding conditions and public charges
Public funding disputes may arise well after a project has ended.
Administrative appeals: OVG, VGH and Federal Administrative Court
Administrative litigation does not automatically provide three full hearings.
Working with us
Please provide a short chronology, the names of the parties and any documents setting deadlines. For a first assessment, the complete court or authority correspondence and evidence of service are particularly important. Representation is subject to a conflict check and express acceptance. Sending an enquiry does not create a mandate or preserve a deadline.
News: procedural developments
German arbitration reform proposals
The German article distinguishes proposed reform from the law currently in force. It discusses digital procedures, arbitration agreements and English-language court proceedings, with practical questions for reviewing existing clauses.
Planning DIS arbitration costs
Institutional fees are only part of the budget. This guide considers tribunal costs, legal representation, experts and translations, and the need to examine the applicable rules before choosing an expedited procedure.
Remote participation requires preparation of documents, reliable technology and arrangements for confidential discussions with counsel. The German guide also addresses the court’s directions and restrictions on recording.
Case law: practical lessons from the archive
BGH, 4 November 2021 – I ZB 54/20: review of an arbitral award
The archived decision concerns a sports association sanction and the public-policy standard in judicial review. State-court review is not a complete rehearing of the merits. For businesses, the practical lesson is to document objections and procedural issues during the arbitration itself.
BGH, 11 February 2021 – I ZR 227/19: legal representation by an architect
Technical expertise does not automatically authorise legal representation. In disputes about permits, architects and legal advisers should allocate responsibilities clearly, particularly for objections and deadlines. The linked archive article is in German.
The linked news and judgment archive articles are currently in German. The English practice series below and the 24 English practice guides provide separate English-language guidance.
2026 practice series
Ten practical guides, organised from January to October. Written retrospectively in November 2026, each guide includes four illustrative examples.
January 2026: organising litigation files and deadlines
A new dispute often begins with an envelope left in a company’s mailroom. Internal forwarding arrangements can determine whether counsel has time to prepare a defence. A designated contact for court documents is therefore as important as a reliable contract archive.
February 2026: challenging a decision and stopping enforcement
An adverse administrative decision raises two separate questions: how can its legality be reviewed, and may the authority enforce it in the meantime? Preparing the main proceedings alone may leave an immediate enforcement risk unaddressed.
March 2026: preserve evidence before repairing machinery
A defective production line often needs an immediate repair. That repair may remove the condition a court would later need to examine. Production planning and evidence preservation should therefore be coordinated.
April 2026: court settlements require more than a payment figure
A settlement reliably ends a dispute only if its obligations can be implemented. With instalments, remedial work or continued cooperation, risks often lie in the wording of supplementary terms.
May 2026: responding to delayed permit decisions
An unprocessed application can block investment. An action based on administrative inaction is a possible remedy, but it does not automatically produce a permit after a waiting period. The state of the application and the substantive entitlement remain important.
June 2026: review arbitration clauses before a dispute
A short arbitration clause may determine the forum for a later multimillion-euro dispute. Unclear institutional names, conflicting contract versions and inconsistent clauses across related agreements can make proceedings considerably more difficult.
July 2026: urgent relief despite an arbitration agreement
Valuable time can pass before an arbitral tribunal is constituted. An arbitration agreement does not generally exclude interim or protective measures by German courts. The appropriate route depends on the threatened harm and the enforcement objective.
August 2026: grant recovery, conditions and liquidity
A repayment demand may arrive long after a funded project has ended. Showing that the investment was commercially successful is not enough. The grant decision, its conditions and the legal requirements for recovery must be examined.
September 2026: preparing an appeal and new evidence
An unfavourable judgment does not automatically lead to a complete rehearing. Admissibility and prospects of success are separate questions. Businesses should therefore decide promptly on the basis of the complete litigation file.
October 2026: review and enforcement of arbitral awards
An award does not always end a dispute in practical terms. The successful party may need state enforcement assistance. The unsuccessful party must examine the limited grounds for review and any running deadlines.
Send an enquiry
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