The court must decide on the application of bias against the judge – it will not continue until June.
Sectoral driving ban for trucks is tightened
Deutsche Bahn has filed an application for partiality against the presiding judge in the Munich damages lawsuit against the leading European truck manufacturers. The reason: You refused to postpone the negotiation scheduled for Thursday because of Corona, said a DB spokeswoman on Wednesday. The regional court now has to decide on the application of bias and postponed the hearing by six months to June 21, 2021.
DB Competition Claims GmbH had requested the date to be postponed to a time “when the pandemic situation has eased”. The court had proposed a hybrid negotiation with video connection as an alternative, but from the point of view of DB this was “completely unsuitable” for a complex procedure involving 40 people and great public interest, said the railway spokeswoman. Therefore, Deutsche Bahn filed a rejection application against the presiding judge.
A move is now mandatory, said a court spokesman. Another chamber at the regional court would have to decide on the bias application. Against this decision, an appeal to the Higher Regional Court would be possible.
Deutsche Bahn, the German Armed Forces and many freight forwarding companies are demanding 385 million euros in damages from truck manufacturers due to excessive prices. From 1997 onwards, MAN, Daimler, DAF, Iveco and Volvo / Renault had exchanged ideas in a cartel. The EU Commission therefore fined the truck farmers almost four billion euros, but left the question open as to whether the truck buyers suffered any damage. At the start of the trial in May, the Munich Regional Court expressed concerns as to whether the lawsuit was well founded.
