Commercial Courts and English-Language Proceedings

Commercial Courts in Germany: what changed in 2025

Commercial Courts are specialised senates at the German Higher Regional Courts that hear major business disputes at first instance, in German or entirely in English. They were introduced by the Act to Strengthen Germany as a Venue for Justice (Justizstandort-Stärkungsgesetz), which entered into force on 1 April 2025 according to the Federal Government. The Act allows each federal state, by ordinance, to set up one or more Commercial Courts at a Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) or a highest state court, and Commercial Chambers at selected regional courts (Landgerichte) that can conduct proceedings in English.

The reform responds to a long-standing concern: complex commercial disputes, particularly international ones, were often taken to arbitration or to courts abroad because German state courts conducted proceedings only in German and offered no fast track for large cases. The new courts aim to offer an alternative that combines judicial expertise, efficient case management, English-language proceedings and the advantages of state courts, such as statutory fees, public precedents and enforcement within the EU under the Brussels Ia Regulation.

This page explains when Commercial Courts have jurisdiction, how parties can access them, how proceedings are conducted, the English-language option, the Commercial Chambers at the regional courts, implementation by the federal states and practical drafting points. For an overview of litigation before German courts generally, see our page on commercial litigation.

Jurisdiction of the Commercial Courts

A Commercial Court can hear at first instance disputes with a value of at least EUR 500,000 in three categories (§ 119b(1) GVG): civil disputes between businesses within the meaning of § 14 of the Civil Code, except disputes on industrial property rights, copyright and unfair competition; disputes arising from or in connection with the acquisition of a company or shares in a company; and disputes between a company and members of its management board or supervisory board. The states can limit the jurisdiction of their Commercial Court to particular subject areas and can extend it to matters otherwise reserved exclusively to the regional courts.

Some disputes are excluded. A Commercial Court cannot be given jurisdiction over disputes on the validity or lawfulness of resolutions of shareholders or company bodies, certain stock corporation and reorganisation proceedings listed in § 71(2) no. 4 GVG, or certain non-contentious corporate proceedings. Challenges to shareholder resolutions therefore remain with the regional courts or, where agreed, arbitration.

Access to the Commercial Courts

The new courts are opt-in courts. A Commercial Court becomes competent by express or implied agreement of the parties, if the conditions of § 119b(1) GVG are met; the agreed jurisdiction is exclusive unless the parties expressly provide otherwise (§ 119b(2) GVG). It also becomes competent if the claimant applies for it in the statement of claim and the defendant enters an appearance in its defence without objecting. The statement of claim must contain an application that the case be heard by the Commercial Court at first instance and must set out any agreement between the parties (§ 610(2) ZPO).

A case filed at a regional court can also be transferred. If the parties could have agreed on the Commercial Court, the regional court must declare itself incompetent and refer the case to the Commercial Court named by the claimant if the claimant applied for this in the statement of claim and the defendant consents by the end of the period for the defence, or vice versa (§ 611(1) ZPO). Counterclaims and extensions of the claim that fall within the Commercial Court's jurisdiction can likewise lead to a referral if the parties agreed or consent.

Where no agreement exists before the dispute arises, the parties can still agree on the Commercial Court afterwards, which is often attractive when both want a quick, expert decision with a guaranteed review by the BGH.

Which disputes suit a Commercial Court

The new forum is designed for large, document-heavy business disputes. Typical candidates are post-closing disputes under share and asset purchase agreements, including purchase price adjustments, earn-outs and warranty claims, which fall within § 119b(1) no. 2 GVG; long-term supply, distribution and licence disputes between businesses; and liability claims by a company against its managing directors or management and supervisory board members, which are covered by § 119b(1) no. 3 GVG. Our pages on mergers and acquisitions and corporate governance explain the substantive law behind many of these claims.

Disputes that turn on confidentiality, involve parties from states without reliable judgment enforcement, or require arbitrators with special technical expertise may still be better suited to arbitration.

Procedure and English-language proceedings

A Commercial Court applies the rules for first-instance proceedings before the regional courts, with modifications. Cases are always heard by a panel of three judges; transfer to a single judge is excluded (§ 610(1) ZPO). As early as possible, the court holds an organisational conference (Organisationstermin) with the parties to agree on the organisation and timetable of the proceedings, similar to a case management conference in arbitration (§ 612 ZPO).

At the joint request of the parties, a verbatim transcript of the hearing and the taking of evidence is prepared, which the parties can follow in real time (§ 613 ZPO). Trade secrets can be protected through the confidentiality measures available in all civil proceedings (§ 273a ZPO).

Where the state has provided for it, proceedings can be conducted entirely in English (§ 184a GVG). English applies if the parties have agreed on it expressly or impliedly, or if the defendant accepts English in its defence without objection. Interpreters or translators can be called in where necessary in individual cases; English-language documents do not need to be translated; and for German-language documents the court can, on application, order the party relying on them to provide an English translation. Hearings, written submissions, orders and the judgment are in English, and English-language proceedings can continue on appeal.

Costs follow the general rules. Court fees are based on the value in dispute under the Court Fees Act (GKG), and the losing party reimburses the winning party's statutory lawyers' fees under the Lawyers' Remuneration Act (RVG). The value relevant for costs is generally capped at EUR 30 million, even where larger amounts are in dispute, according to the guidelines published by the Higher Regional Courts (Commercial Courts guidelines). For large disputes, this makes state court proceedings considerably more predictable in cost than arbitration.

Evidence and experts

The rules of evidence are those of German civil procedure. There is no pre-trial discovery: each party must present the facts and evidence supporting its case, and the court can order a party or a third party to produce specific documents to which a party has referred (§ 142 ZPO).

Witnesses are examined primarily by the court, although the parties' lawyers can put questions, and the organisational conference allows the parties to agree on written witness statements, the order of witnesses and time limits. Experts are appointed by the court, while reports commissioned by a party count as part of that party's submissions. Many of these features will be familiar to users of international arbitration in Germany, where tribunals often follow a similar approach.

Appeal to the Federal Court of Justice

A distinctive feature of the new courts is the direct route to the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, BGH). Judgments of a Commercial Court at first instance can be appealed by way of revision, and the revision does not require leave (§ 614 ZPO). The revision is limited to points of law, so the Commercial Court's findings of fact are generally final. Parties therefore get a two-tier procedure, a fact-finding first instance before experienced appellate judges and a review on the law by the BGH, instead of the usual three tiers of regional court, Higher Regional Court and BGH. Parties can also waive appeals.

Judgments of a Commercial Court or Commercial Chamber are enforceable in Germany without a separate declaration of enforceability, and within the EU under the Brussels Ia Regulation without exequatur. Outside the EU, enforcement depends on bilateral or multilateral conventions, including the Hague Judgments Convention of 2019 where applicable, and on the law of the state of enforcement. This is one of the points where arbitration under the New York Convention may still be preferable for counterparties in third states.

Commercial Court or arbitration?

For many companies, the key question is whether to choose a Commercial Court or international arbitration in new contracts. The state court offers statutory and capped costs, three experienced judges without the need to pay arbitrators, a public precedent, a guaranteed review on points of law by the BGH and simple enforcement within the EU. Arbitration offers confidentiality, the choice of arbitrators, worldwide enforcement under the New York Convention and greater procedural flexibility. In purely European relationships the Commercial Court is now a serious option; in contracts with counterparties in Asia, the Middle East or the Americas, arbitration usually remains the safer choice.

State-by-state implementation

A Commercial Court or Commercial Chamber exists only where a state has set them up by ordinance, and the states have used their discretion differently. According to the guidelines prepared by a working group of the Higher Regional Courts of Bremen, Celle, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hamm, Munich and Stuttgart and the Kammergericht in Berlin, ordinances had been issued in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Berlin, Bremen, Hamburg, Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia and Saxony. The same guidelines list Commercial Chambers at the regional courts of Stuttgart, Berlin II, Hamburg, Frankfurt am Main, Braunschweig, Hanover, Osnabrück, Bielefeld, Düsseldorf, Essen and Cologne.

The details differ: some states have limited their courts to particular subject areas, value thresholds for Commercial Chambers vary, and not every court offers English for all types of dispute. Several states may also agree on joint Commercial Chambers across state borders (§ 184a(2) GVG). Before drafting a clause or filing a claim, parties should check the current ordinance of the relevant state, because the landscape continues to develop.

The choice of state also matters for practical reasons beyond the ordinance: the location of witnesses and documents, the experience of the senate with particular types of dispute, and the availability of hearing facilities for English-language proceedings. Because the parties can choose the court by agreement, they are not limited to the state where one of them is based, provided the requirements of § 119b GVG and the relevant ordinance are met. A first body of practice is developing as the courts publish their initial decisions and procedural orders.

• Check whether the chosen state has a Commercial Court and which subject areas it covers.
• Confirm whether English-language proceedings are available for the type of dispute.
• Name the court precisely and make the choice exclusive in the contract.
• Consider whether confidentiality needs require arbitration instead.
• Plan for enforcement outside the EU before choosing a state court.

Illustration: a German industrial group sells a subsidiary to a Dutch buyer under a share purchase agreement governed by German law. The parties agree that disputes are to be heard exclusively by the Commercial Court at a named Higher Regional Court, in English. When the buyer later claims EUR 6 million for breach of warranties, the court holds an organisational conference, sets a timetable with one evidentiary hearing and delivers its judgment in English. The losing party's revision goes directly to the Federal Court of Justice, and the judgment can be enforced in the Netherlands under the Brussels Ia Regulation.

How TRW & Co helps

We advise companies on whether and how to use the Commercial Courts and Commercial Chambers, draft jurisdiction and language clauses, and compare them with arbitration and ordinary litigation for particular contracts and disputes. We represent parties in proceedings before Commercial Courts and Commercial Chambers, in English or German, including in post-M&A disputes, B2B contract disputes and disputes between companies and their directors, and in revision proceedings before the Federal Court of Justice with counsel admitted there. To discuss a dispute or a clause, please contact us.