DLA Piper successfully defends at Higher Administrative Court: District Court of Kiel's exercise of house rights against Axel Springer was unlawful

DLA Piper has successfully represented Axel Springer Deutschland GmbH, which includes BILD, in a summary proceeding before the Higher Administrative Court of Schleswig against a photography ban imposed by the President of the District Court of Kiel based on house rights. Following the initial success at the Administrative Court of Schleswig, the Higher Administrative Court of Schleswig-Holstein has now dismissed the District Court of Kiel’s appeal as unfounded (Decision of 27.03.2025, Case No. 4 MB 8/25).

The Higher Administrative Court upheld the first-instance decision, finding that the prerequisites for the order were not sufficiently substantiated. Like the first instance, it left open the question of whether Axel Springer Deutschland GmbH had violated two orders of proceedings in the past. The court found that the order against Axel Springer Deutschland GmbH was not covered by the (house rights) authorization basis of § 14 para. 1 LJG. Moreover, the Higher Administrative Court emphasized that § 14 para. 1 LJG does not provide a basis for “mere sanctions”.

The Administrative Court had already found that the contested cease-and-desist order was flawed due to a violation of the principle of proportionality, also criticizing the “sanctioning impression”. Following this first-instance decision, the President of the District Court of Kiel partially granted Axel Springer Deutschland GmbH’s appeal, limiting the photography ban to criminal trials rather than the entire courthouse. She also filed an appeal with the Higher Administrative Court, which must consider subsequent changes in the factual or legal situation. However, the partial revocation did not lead to a different outcome.

“The Higher Administrative Court clarifies that a house rights order can only have a preventive, not a sanctioning character”, says DLA Piper partner and administrative law expert Dr Michael Stulz-Herrnstadt, who led the proceedings. “This decision improves the protection of press work in court”, adds Prof Dr Stefan Engels, spokesperson for the firm’s Media, Sport, and Entertainment sector.

The DLA Piper team, led by partner Dr Michael Stulz-Herrnstadt (Public Commercial Law/Media Law), included partner Prof Dr Stefan Engels (Advertising/Litigation), senior associate Dr Rabea Kjellsson (Public Commercial Law/Media Law), and associate Dr Lukas Gerhardinger (Advertising/Litigation; all Hamburg).

The dispute was handled in-house by Legal Counsel Felix Gatzmaga.