Competition and Copyright Law
Competition Law
Successfully assert your position
Not all innovations can be secured through intellectual property rights. However, the supplementary protection of rights provided under the German Act Against Unfair Competition can often be helpful when it comes to asserting or enforcing a competitive position. Our experienced competition law experts will be happy to advise you in this area.
What can we do for you? We advise and support our clients in the following areas:
- Consultation in the development of competition and marketing strategies as well as in designing websites, brochures, advertising material, patient information leaflets and sales packaging including legal analysis of advertising statements and product labels
- Judicial and extrajudicial defence of advertising and marketing measures against legal complaints from third parties
- Prohibition of unfair advertising and other unfair business methods practised by competitors
- Defence strategies in the case of disclosure or violation of trade secrets
Our strengths for your benefit
As this subsection of competition law is often influenced by technology, our technical expertise can be of great advantage to you.
Copyright Law
For creative minds and rights distributors
As the owner or licence holder of copyright-protected works, you want to both defend and exploit optimally your rights. If you are a content provider, you want to reduce the risk of having legal action taken against you due to copyright infringement. We can provide you with expert professional advice and support in each of these areas.
What can we do for you? We advise and support our clients in the following areas:
- Designing copyright licence agreements and other contracts relating to copyright law
- Judicial and extrajudicial enforcement of copyrights and related rights (e.g. photographic rights, personality rights)
- Consultation for advertisers and internet providers in respect of applicable regulations and case law relating to the acquisition of third-party texts, images, slogans or logos
Our strengths for your benefit
Our attorneys can advise both creative thinkers and rights distributors in respect of all questions relating to copyright law while simultaneously taking associated areas of law into consideration.
Antitrust Law
Infringements of antitrust law can lead to penalty procedures and the invalidity under civil law of already-concluded contracts. When it comes to drawing up contracts in the area of intellectual property rights, it is extremely important that antitrust law requirements also be taken into consideration. This applies in particular to contracts that include exclusivity conditions and competition restraints.
What can we do for you? We advise and support our clients in the following areas:
- Drawing up sales concepts and corporate collaborations that conform with antitrust law, for example with regards to exclusivity as well as price and purchase obligations
- Enforcement of claims to injunctive relief and supply claims vis-à-vis powerful and market-dominant companies, for example, due to discrimination, as well as defence against such claims
- Representation of your legal rights before both the responsible competition authorities, for example in the case of penalty procedures, and the civil courts
Our strengths for your benefit
For an assessment under antitrust law in respect of agreements between companies relating to technological subject-matter, our attorneys at law can, whenever necessary, always rely on the technical expertise of our patent attorneys.
