Practical Insights
Practical insights for the moments when contracts meet reality.
Contracts often reveal their true character only when a conflict arises. What may look balanced on paper can shift significantly under pressure, often to the disadvantage of the party that overlooked or misjudged a legal or commercial risk.
The articles on this page are based on my daily work in contract design and litigation. A particular focus is on mechanical and plant engineering. In this sector, legal risks often become especially visible: in complex project chains, cross-border contractual relationships and disputes with substantial economic consequences.
The articles address questions that arise again and again in practice: Where are the legal breaking points of a contract? When do they become dangerous in the course of a project? And what can be done before commercial tension turns into litigation?
Each article combines legal substance with the perspective of a lawyer who does not only draft and review contracts, but also conducts the disputes that arise from them.
These articles cannot replace individual legal advice. They do, however, show what matters in practice and where contracts, projects and conflicts should be examined more closely.
LATEST ARTICLES

On the bias of judges in civil proceedings: If judges do not read a party’s pleadings, this can justify a motion for recusal!
Following on from my overview article on the application for recusal pursuant to Section 42 ZPO, I would like to report on an interesting ruling by the Higher Regional Court of Karlsruhe. According to this ruling, a judge’s failure to read the pleadings submitted by a party can give rise to concerns of bias. In the case in question, a judge had overlooked an application for recusal directed against him, as he had forwarded the pleading containing it unread to the opposing party for comment. This violates the so-called duty to wait pursuant to Section 47 (1) ZPO, according to which only “official acts that cannot be postponed” are permitted from the filing of an application for recusal until it has been dealt with.

BGH on the legal consequences of thwarting evidence
In legal disputes, it often happens that one party makes it difficult for the opposing party to provide evidence. In these cases, the question then arises as to whether and, if so, with what legal consequences it can be assumed that evidence has been obstructed.

Guide to procedural law: Easier way to claim damages for exhaust gas manipulation – On the BGH ruling of June 26, 2023 (Ref. Via ZR 335/21)
This article attempts to classify and evaluate the current ruling of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) of June 26, 2023 (Ref. Via ZR 335/21) on the subject of compensation for damages due to emissions manipulation by car manufacturers.
BGH NEWS
Find out about the latest case law of the Federal Court of Justice here
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