FAQ

The Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg and Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Stuttgart opened on April 4th, 2025.

If agreed by the parties, the Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg is the initial jurisdiction for values in dispute over 500,000 euros, responsible for

1. Civil disputes between businesses (Sec. 14 of the German Civil Code) in the area of corporate law;
2. Disputes arising from or in conjunction with the acquisition of a company or at least 3 % of the shares in a company;
3. Disputes between a company and members of the executive body or Supervisory Board;

If the court decisions listed in Sec. 13 paragraph 2 of the Ordinance of the Ministry of Justice of Baden-Württemberg Regarding Judicial Responsibility (ZuVOJu BW) and disputes in proceedings in accordance with Sec. 119b paragraph 1 clause 4 of the Judicature Act (GVG) are not involved

The Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg serves as the court of appeal for complaints against decisions by the Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Stuttgart.

The Commercial Chambers are made up of a Commercial Civil Chamber and two Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Stuttgart. 

The Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Stuttgart are responsible for

1. Civil disputes between businesses (Sec. 14 of the German Civil Code) in the area of corporate law,
2. Disputes arising from or in conjunction with the acquisition of a company or at least 3 % of the shares in a company,
3. Disputes between a company and members of the executive body or Supervisory Board.

from the entire district of the Higher Regional Court of Stuttgart (concentration of responsibility) if the court decisions listed in Sec. 13 paragraph 2 of the Ordinance of the Ministry of Justice of Baden-Württemberg Regarding Judicial Responsibility (ZuVOJu BW) and disputes in proceedings in accordance with Sec. 119b paragraph 1 clause 4 of the Judicature Act (GVG) are not involved

Since these are special chambers of the Regional Courts, the Regional Court requires only jurisdiction over the matter of the case, and therefore the value in dispute must be over 5,000 euros.

• The Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg is responsible for company acquisitions and disputes under corporate law, including disputes among corporate bodies. The parties can agree to the Commercial Court as the initial court of jurisdiction for litigation values over 500,000 euros, for instance using the Stuttgart model clause. If there is a dispute for which the Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg could be responsible, the court will also be responsible if the plaintiff so moves in the complaint and the defendant does not object in the statement of defense (cf. Sec. 119b paragraph 2 clause 3 GVG).
• If the parties have not agreed to the Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg as the responsible court, or if the value in dispute is less than 500,000 euros, the dispute can be heard before the Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Stuttgart, if it is the local responsible court, or if the parties have agreed to the jurisdiction of the Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Stuttgart, for instance under the Stuttgart model clause.

You can find directions to our courts here.

Proceedings before both the Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg and the Commercial Chambers may be held in German or English (see Sec. 184a paragraph 1 GVG in conjunction with Sec. 7 paragraph 3 and paragraph 7a, paragraph 3 ZuVOJu BW). Proceedings may also be held in a mix of the two languages.

Learn more about these advantages here.

In general, proceedings are conducted in accordance with the GVG and Code of Civil Procedure (ZPO). In addition, special procedural instruments govern proceedings before the Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg and Commercial Chambers of the Regional court of Stuttgart, in order to adjust proceedings to meet the needs of large civil commercial cases. During an early organizational meeting (the case management conference), agreements are made regarding the organization and steps of the proceedings. This allows complex proceedings to be discussed in advance – via video conference if needed – and materials to be structured.

At the request of the parties, a readable verbatim record of the hearing and hearing of evidence is prepared (Sec. 613 ZPO). 

As in all civil proceedings, the public can be excluded from hearings involving trade secrets, and the opposing parties can be obligated to maintain strict discretion (cf. in particular Sec. 171 no. 2 GVG, Sec. 273a ZPO).

The German court fee system is regulated by law. It includes a cap for court fees at a disputed value of 30 million euros.

A list of judges at the Commercial Court of Baden-Württemberg and Commercial Chambers of the Regional Court of Stuttgart is available here.

• An order of provisional enforceability of a judgment means that even if appeals are made, this will not delay enforcement.
• Under Directive (EU) no. 1215/2012 (Brüssel Ia-VO), German state decisions in civil and commercial matters can be enforced in a comparatively prompt and simple manner in their scope of application. Under Article 39 of Brüssel Ia-VO, a decision issued in a member state and enforceable there is considered enforceable in the other member states without requiring a declaration of enforceability. Furthermore, the Lugano Convention of 2007 between the EU and Norway, Iceland and Switzerland facilitates the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters within the EEA and Switzerland.

You can find a list of our contact persons here.