Our experience. Your competitive advantage. We are your experts in unfair competition law.
Unfair Competition Law
The range of legal services we offer in the field of unfair competition law is as varied as the law itself.
We advise you on planning and implementing new business models and advertising methods as well as on designing advertising campaigns.
In addition to issues relating to misleading advertising, a particular focus of our work is on the multi-faceted areas of product imitation and exclusionary competition.
In unfair competition cases, we fight passionately for your commercial freedom.
Speed is crucial in unfair competition litigation, where cases are usually decided in summary proceedings. We can keep pace.
We evaluate the market behavior of your competitors and consistently protect against unfair trade practices.
We also defend against allegations of anti-competitive behavior. We strategically employ all available procedural avenues as a defense to such allegations.
A particular focus of our activities is on the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector.
Medical, economic and healthcare policy conditions are constantly changing, which means legal advice on the distribution and marketing of medicinal products, medical devices and other healthcare products must constantly adapt with regulations on advertising being particularly strict.
Our legal advice and service in this highly complex area covers not only traditional areas such as pharmaceutical and drug advertising, but also medical devices, cosmetics and dietary supplements, as well as trademark, unfair competition, licensing and distribution law.
In recent years, environmental claims have become increasingly significant.
As companies seek to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability, they are increasingly using environmental claims. This involves using phrases like “climate neutral”, “environmentally friendly”, or “sustainable”.
The legal obstacles for “green claims” are becoming increasingly difficult to overcome. We monitor the multitude of court decisions and current EU draft directives and provide guidance on the legal permissibility of environmental advertising.
On the subject: From our IP blog
Since 27 September 2026, stricter rules on unfair commercial practices introduced by the EU's Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EmpCo) Directive have applied in Germany. This raises a pressing question for manufacturers and retailers: What happens to products and packaging manufactured or placed on the market before that date which no longer comply with the new requirements? Can these stocks still be sold, or do businesses face injunctions, product recalls and, potentially, the destruction of perfectly usable goods?
OLG Bamberg, judgment of 29 July 2026 – 3 UKl 13/25 e | The Third Civil Senate of the OLG Bamberg continues to develop its Digital Services Act case law. For the first time, it specifies how far providers must disclose the weighting of their recommendation system parameters; at the same time, it prohibits login requirements as a precondition for reporting illegal content. We summarise the decision and provide guidance for practice.
The judgment ‘Obligation to Return VI’ (I ZR 123/25) of 3 June 2026 is – as the name suggests – the sixth judgment by the First Civil Senate of the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) on the so-called obligation to return applicable to hire cars. Following the pronouncement of the judgement, it was widely reported that the BGH had confirmed the continued validity of one of the most controversial provisions of passenger transport law. In the meantime, the dust has settled somewhat and it is becoming clear that this interpretation falls far short of the mark. Indeed, it follows from the grounds of the judgement that maintaining the obligation to return contravenes EU law if one takes its traditional objective and justification as a basis.
From 2 August 2026, the labelling obligation under Article 50(4) of the EU AI Act applies – and it reaches practically anyone who uses generative AI professionally to create images, videos, or text. On 10 June 2026, the European Commission published the final Code of Practice on the labelling of AI-generated content. We explain when a label is required, what it must look like, and what risks arise if it is missing.
Three reasons for choosing HARTE-BAVENDAMM
Satisfied clients, numerous top-tier rankings, major professional publications, extensive litigation experience: intellectual property law is our core competence.
We represent your interests with ingenuity and dedication. We protect your intellectual property and develop creative strategies. Complex cases are our strength.
As a reliable partner, we provide our clients with resolute, poised, and effective guidance. In challenging conflict scenarios, our team is well aware that cooler heads always prevail and excel at delivering valuable and advantageous solutions to our clients.
