The German “Commercial Courts” Dilemma

In an M&A contract, the parties consider agreeing on the jurisdiction of the German courts. The corporate guys get in touch: “Isn’t there this M&A chamber at the Frankfurt District Court, where they conduct proceedings in English…?”

Well:

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Federal Supreme Court: Unrestricted Review of Arbitral Awards in Antitrust Matters

by Lena Rindfus, Stefan Horn and Peter Bert

In a recent decision, the Federal Supreme Court (Bundesgerichtshof) held that German courts have jurisdiction to fully review arbitral awards applying competition law, if such an award is before them in enforcement or setting aside proceedings. The prohibition of a révision au fond, that is, a substantive review of the arbitral award by the ordinary courts, which is part of both the German domestic arbitration law and the New York Convention, does not apply in that context. Hence, lengthy and complex arbitral proceedings could end up being just “first instance proceedings” on their way to the ordinary courts if they relate to competition law matters. Read More

The Best Jazz Album 2022 – A Comparative Survey

Last year, I looked at “best of” lists from the English-speaking world and complied a survey  comprising the New York Times, The Guardian, JazzWise, Pitchfork and Slate. This year, I took a slightly different approach and combined the Anglo-Saxon view provided by the New York Times and The Guardian with two German sources, Süddeutsche Zeitung and Bayerischer Rundfunk (Bavarian Public Radio).

As a result, the survey contains more (continental) European artists. But like last year, there is very little overlap and the compilation is pretty diverse.  Read More