Civil proceedings
Before you decide whether to take legal steps, it helps to know what may be ahead of you. Here is the usual path — from the first letter to the judgment.
That is how almost every case starts. A letter with a deadline. Everything that follows depends on whether an answer comes back — and what it says.
The new apartment has defects, a contract is not being honoured, the tenant is not paying. You are considering whether to do something about it.
In practiceGather everything connected with the matter. Get in touch quickly. There may be time limits to observe, and with defects it can matter that the other side is notified in good time.
We go through what exactly happened, what you want to achieve and which options are realistic. If it becomes apparent that the effort bears no relation to the likely outcome, we say so openly.
In practiceBring along, or send us beforehand, whatever you have: contracts, invoices, emails, photographs. Better too much than too little.
This is less about who is in the right than about what can be proved. In civil litigation those are not the same thing.
A letter to the other side: with a clearly formulated claim, the legal basis, a set deadline — and a statement of the consequences.
In practiceA considerable share of cases ends here. Some people only pay or act once they realise it is getting serious.
They pay, and we are done. A counter-proposal comes, and we negotiate. Or nothing comes at all, and you decide whether to sue.
At every stage a settlement can still be reached, right up until the judgment. Proceedings once begun are not a one-way street. They can be brought to an end at any point.
The claim opens the proceedings. The relief sought has to be precisely framed, the claim has to be coherently pleaded, and evidence offered for every assertion.
In practiceThe amount in dispute generally determines which court has jurisdiction, how high the court fees are and what costs you face if you lose — or what the other side has to pay towards your costs if you win.
If the case is about money alone, the order-for-payment procedure can usually be used. The court then issues an order for payment without a hearing. The other side can object to it. If they do not, the order becomes final and you can enforce it. Only with an objection does the matter go into ordinary proceedings.
If it is not only about money, the court serves the claim. The other side is given a deadline to reply in writing, or the court schedules a hearing straight away. There it is established what is in dispute and whether a solution is possible. If none is reached, the court sets out how the proceedings will continue.
In practiceThe first hearing is usually the first time you see how the court views the matter. That often shifts the negotiating position more than the best written pleading, and settlements that seemed out of reach suddenly become possible.
At the hearing witnesses give evidence, you yourself are examined, documents are put in. In construction and defects disputes the court will usually first appoint an expert, whose report as a rule tips the balance. The report has to be paid for in advance, as a rule by the party offering that evidence. In construction disputes that is a substantial sum you have to reckon with before any decision is reached.
At the end the court decides on the substance and on the costs. Whoever loses generally also pays the other side's costs, but only at the statutory tariff. There can be a difference between that and the actual legal fees.
Tell us briefly what it is about. At the first meeting we discuss which options are realistic — including when the answer is that it is not worth the effort.
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A general overview of the usual course of civil proceedings at first instance, not advice on an individual case. An appeal against the judgment is generally available. Enforcing a judgment is a separate stage again. Duration, costs and course depend on the court, on the amount in dispute and on the other side. In case of doubt the German version prevails.