Jurisdiction clauses: New distribution of jurisdiction among the courts in North Rhine-Westphalia

The (second) ordinance amending the Ordinance on Jurisdiction of June 3, 2025 (GV. NRW 2025 No. 27 of June 17, 2025, p. 507 ff.), the statewide jurisdictions of the Higher Regional Courts of Hamm and Cologne were expanded as of July 1, 2025. At the same time, a new judicial focus is being established at the Regional Court of Aachen.

Key points

The amendment to the Judicial Jurisdiction Ordinance provides for statewide concentrations of jurisdiction among the courts:

The Higher Regional Court of Hamm is particularly affected by these changes:

• In future, the Higher Regional Court of Hamm will therefore be responsible for appeal and complaint proceedings in civil liability cases under special legal provisions. These include, in particular, disputes arising from the Product Liability Act, but also claims under the Environmental Liability Act, the Liability Act, the Atomic Energy Act, the Air Traffic Act, the Medicines Act, the Water Resources Act, and the Federal Mining Act.

The new responsibilities also include appeal and complaint proceedings in civil law disputes arising from the law governing the so-called liberal professions. This means that in future, the Higher Regional Court of Hamm will rule statewide in second-instance liability and remuneration issues involving lawyers, tax advisors, auditors, and certified public accountants.

Finally, the nationwide jurisdiction of the Higher Regional Court of Hamm for consumer protection matters will also be expanded. This includes, for example, exclusive statewide jurisdiction for proceedings under the Act on Injunctive Relief in Consumer Law and other Violations. In addition, collective consumer protection will be completed by jurisdiction over model case applications under the Capital Markets Model Case Act (KapMuG).

• The Higher Regional Court of Cologne will assume further special jurisdiction in the area of transport law. In future, Cologne will be responsible for appeals or complaints in disputes arising from freight, forwarding, and warehousing transactions throughout North Rhine-Westphalia.

• In this context, the Aachen Regional Court will have exclusive jurisdiction in the first instance for all claims arising from the transport of goods by road and rail, as well as for freight forwarding and freight transactions in connection with such transport. This also applies to international cross-border transport.

Practical information

For all proceedings that were already pending before July 1, 2025, the previous jurisdiction remains unchanged. 

However, with regard to all new proceedings – since July 1, 2025 – the new rules on jurisdiction should be examined closely. In particular, it should be noted that the jurisdiction established by this ordinance is mandatory and exclusive. Companies will therefore no longer be free to agree on a different place of jurisdiction within North Rhine-Westphalia if their case falls under the new rules on jurisdiction. Existing jurisdiction clauses, whether in individual contracts or in general terms and conditions, which specify a particular place of jurisdiction in North Rhine-Westphalia, will also cease to have effect from July 1, 2025, insofar as they are subject to the the ordinance.

It is also questionable and remains to be seen whether the jurisdiction rules are sufficiently transparent. With regard to claims arising from strict liability, for example, it is expressly stated that decisions on appeals and complaints in disputes concerning claims arising from liability under Section 1 of the Product Liability Act are assigned to the Higher Regional Court of Hamm. What applies with regard to producer liability under Section 823 of the German Civil Code (BGB) is not clear in this respect.

Finally it remains to be seen whether the goal announced by our State Minister of Justice, Benjamin Limbach, of strengthening the specialization of the courts and ensuring high quality and reliability of jurisprudence with the new distribution of tasks, while at the same time making North Rhine-Westphalia more attractive as a place of jurisdiction for citizens and businesses, will be achieved with this new ordinance.