“No competitive relationship between airline and air passenger rights portal” – Article by Dr. Rudolf Böckenholt in GRUR-Prax 11/2024

Dr. Rudolf Böckenholt discusses the decision of the Higher Regional Court of Hamburg of 14 March 2024, 5 U 132/22, GRUR-RS 2024, 6288 – Papierkrieg mit Airline, in the magazine of the publisher C.H.Beck.

In the current issue 11/2024 of “GRUR-Prax – Gewerblicher Rechtsschutz und Urheberrecht / Praxis im Immaterialgüter- und Wettbewerbsrecht”, BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT partner and attorney at law Dr. Rudolf Böckenholt explains a decision of the Higher Regional Court of Hamburg from March 14, 2024 (15 U 132/22, GRUR-RS 2024, 6288 – Papierkrieg mit Airline) on the question of whether a competitive relationship exists between offers from airlines and air passenger rights portals if both deal with the processing of claims for damages (e.g. due to delays or flight cancellations).

The court’s answer is: No!

The activities are neither similar nor interchangeable. The airline was fulfilling its duty as a debtor of claims under the Passenger Rights Regulation, whereas the Passenger Rights Portal offered legal services.
What sounds logical and comprehensible is currently highly controversial in case law, which is why the Higher Regional Court of Hamburg has also allowed an appeal to the Federal Court of Justice, which is actually being conducted there.

The full article in German by Dr. Rudolf Böckenholt entitled “No competitive relationship between airline and air passenger rights portal” can be found in the printed edition of GRUR-Prax 11/2024. Subscribers to Beck-Online may access the article here.