Commercial Courts in Germany: Jurisdiction and Forum Selection

A. Introduction

The German Justice Location Strengthening Act entered into force on 1 April 2025. It enabled the federal states to establish a Commercial Court at one Higher Regional Court and several Commercial Chambers at Regional Courts.

The legislative objective was to strengthen Germany as a forum for complex commercial disputes. Companies often select arbitration or foreign state courts when disputes involve international parties, technical facts or high values. Specialist senates and chambers, the possibility of English-language proceedings and more structured case management are intended to make German courts more competitive.

One year after the Act entered into force, the practical questions are clear: Which Commercial Courts and Chambers exist, what do they cover and how should international businesses reflect them in contracts and litigation strategy?

This article reflects the position as of March 2026. It is not a current court-monitoring service and does not replace a case-specific review of jurisdiction and court organisation.

B. Legal framework and objectives

1. Specialist units within the ordinary courts

Commercial Courts and Commercial Chambers are not a separate court system. They are specialist senates and chambers within the ordinary civil courts and remain subject to the general German rules of civil procedure and court organisation.

The relevant subject areas may include:

• major commercial disputes between businesses;
• complex supply, distribution and infrastructure contracts;
• M&A and post-M&A disputes;
• corporate and shareholder disputes;
• disputes between a company and its managing director, management board or supervisory board;
• construction, insurance, banking, energy, transport, logistics and IT disputes where the relevant court has established the corresponding specialisation.

The designation “Commercial Court” does not automatically confer jurisdiction over every business dispute. The specific senate, subject matter and value threshold must be checked.

2. English-language proceedings

The Act is intended to facilitate proceedings in English before German courts. This can be important for international groups, foreign shareholders, cross-border supply chains and management teams that work primarily in English.

English is not automatically available in every commercial case. The applicable statutory requirements and the practice of the relevant court must be considered before a jurisdiction clause is drafted.

3. Case management and trade secrets

Complex disputes may involve extensive evidence, technical documents, multiple parties and confidential commercial information. The framework includes case-management conferences and improved protection of trade secrets.

The actual procedural tools and applications available in a particular case should be discussed with litigation counsel at an early stage.

4. Specialist judges and appellate route

Specialisation is intended to support efficient and commercially informed handling of complex disputes. The relevant issue is not only whether a court is called a Commercial Court, but whether the assigned senate has experience in the dispute’s specific subject matter.

There is also an appellate framework involving access to the Federal Court of Justice where proceedings were heard at first instance before a Commercial Court. The available remedies in a specific case must be checked under the applicable procedural provisions.

C. Value thresholds and functional jurisdiction

As of March 2026, the general threshold for disputes before Commercial Courts was at least EUR 500,000.

For Commercial Chambers, the general threshold was more than EUR 5,000, although individual states and chambers may impose higher thresholds. In certain configurations, a threshold of EUR 100,000 is relevant.

This makes the amount in dispute a central element of forum selection. A claim filed before a functionally incompetent chamber can face delays or dismissal for lack of jurisdiction.

Practical rule: A jurisdiction clause should address the court, subject matter, threshold, first instance and possible appeal, rather than merely referring to a “German Commercial Court.”

D. Availability across Germany as of March 2026

As of March 2026, Commercial Courts and/or Commercial Chambers had been established in nine of Germany’s 16 federal states:

• Bremen
• Hamburg
• Lower Saxony
• North Rhine-Westphalia
• Hesse
• Baden-Württemberg
• Berlin
• Saxony
• Bavaria

As of March 2026, there was no corresponding specialist senate or chamber in Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Brandenburg, Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt, Rhineland-Palatinate or Saarland at that point.

The following overview is historical and must be checked against the current court websites before use.

1. Bremen

The Commercial Court at the Higher Regional Court of Bremen was described as focusing on:

• space technology;
• civil aviation technology;
• hydrogen technology;
• logistics;
• maritime trade.

No Commercial Chamber had been established at Regional Court level.

Commercial Court website: www.oberlandesgericht.bremen.de/commercial-court-25442

2. Hamburg

The Higher Regional Court of Hamburg was described as having two Commercial Court senates.

One senate covered, among other areas:

• construction and architectural law;
• banking and finance;
• corporate law;
• post-M&A disputes.

The other focused on:

• insurance;
• transport;
• shipping;
• traffic law.

Two Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Hamburg were described as covering international commercial law, antitrust, transport, IT, insolvency, post-M&A and corporate disputes.

Commercial Court website: www.commercial-court.hamburg

3. Lower Saxony

The Higher Regional Court of Celle was described as having two Commercial Court senates. One focused on construction and architectural disputes. The other covered competition, energy and corporate disputes.

Commercial Chambers were identified at the Regional Courts of Braunschweig, Hanover and Osnabrück. A EUR 100,000 threshold applied to the relevant Lower Saxony chambers. The Commercial Court in Celle was described as the appellate forum for decisions of the Commercial Chamber at the Regional Court of Hanover.

Commercial Court website: www.commercial-court-celle.de

4. North Rhine-Westphalia

The Commercial Court at the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf was described as having three specialist senates:

• construction and architectural disputes;
• insurance disputes;
• corporate and post-M&A disputes.

Commercial Chambers were identified at:

• Düsseldorf: corporate law, M&A and insurance;
• Cologne: IT law, with a value threshold above EUR 100,000;
• Bielefeld: renewable energy, with a value threshold above EUR 100,000;
• Essen: renewable energy, with a value threshold above EUR 100,000.

Commercial Court website: www.olg-duesseldorf.nrw.de/commercial_court

5. Hesse

The Commercial Court at the Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main was described as reflecting the city’s role as a financial and commercial centre. Its specialist areas included M&A, corporate, commercial and banking disputes.

Three Commercial Chambers at the Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main were described as handling M&A, corporate, director liability, commercial and banking disputes. Exclusions included intellectual property, copyright, unfair competition, construction and architectural law and insurance contract disputes.

Commercial Court website: www.commercial-court-frankfurt.de

6. Baden-Württemberg

The Commercial Court at the Higher Regional Court of Stuttgart was described as focusing on M&A, corporate law and disputes involving corporate bodies. Three Commercial Chambers were identified at the Regional Court of Stuttgart: one for commercial civil matters and two for commercial disputes.

Commercial Court website: www.commercial-court.de

7. Berlin

The Commercial Court at the Berlin Court of Appeal was described as having a specialisation corresponding to the Commercial Chamber at Berlin Regional Court II. The focus was construction and architectural law, including construction, architectural and engineering contracts.

Commercial Court website: www.berlin.de/gerichte/kammergericht/das-gericht/commercial-court

8. Saxony

Two specialist senates were identified at the Higher Regional Court of Dresden. One covered real-estate leases and agricultural leases, corporate disputes and disputes between companies and members of management or supervisory boards. The other covered disputes arising from banking transactions.

No Commercial Chamber had been established at Regional Court level in Saxony.

Commercial Court website: www.justiz.sachsen.de/olg/commercial-court-dresden-6062.html

9. Bavaria

Two specialist senates were identified at the Higher Regional Court of Munich: one for supply-chain disputes and one for corporate disputes. No Commercial Chamber had been established at Regional Court level in Bavaria.

Commercial Court website: www.justiz.bayern.de/gerichte-und-behoerden/oberlandesgerichte/muenchen/commercial.php

E. Strategic legal assessment

1. Specialist areas differ from state to state

The overview demonstrates that German Commercial Courts do not offer a single uniform catalogue of subject areas. The states have developed different specialisations reflecting regional economic structures and legal expertise.

This matters for forum selection. A clause naming a Commercial Court without identifying the relevant subject matter may not deliver the intended result.

2. The first instance and appellate court must fit together

The Commercial Chamber at first instance and the Commercial Court at appellate level do not always have identical specialisations. A contract should therefore be reviewed across the entire potential court route:

• Which Regional Court has first-instance jurisdiction?
• Is a Commercial Chamber competent?
• Does the corresponding Higher Regional Court have a matching Commercial Court?
• Does the value in dispute meet the relevant threshold?
• Is the selected court competent for the subject matter?
• Can the parties realistically use English?
• Are the intended appeal and enforcement routes available?

3. Dynamic jurisdiction clauses

A dynamic jurisdiction clause can be useful in long-term supply, infrastructure, financing, technology and cooperation agreements. It can allocate disputes according to objective criteria such as:

• subject matter;
• amount in dispute;
• first-instance court;
• location of the relevant court;
• appellate court;
• available language;
• future changes in court organisation.

Such a clause must comply with the requirements for a valid jurisdiction agreement and should not be copied from a generic template without review.

4. Example: renewable-energy equipment

Consider the example of a Munich manufacturer selling components for wind or hydropower equipment to a French company in Bordeaux.

The parties might consider selecting a Commercial Chamber specialising in renewable-energy disputes in North Rhine-Westphalia. The relevant chambers, however, were described as subject to a EUR 100,000 threshold. A clause should therefore distinguish between lower-value disputes and disputes above that threshold and should identify an appropriate court for each category.

The example illustrates why forum selection requires more than identifying a city. The clause must address the subject matter, value threshold, first instance and appeal.

5. International forum selection

International contracts should also be reviewed under the applicable European and international jurisdiction rules. Without a valid jurisdiction agreement, the counterparty may be able to sue at its own place of business or another statutory forum.

This is particularly important for cross-border supply agreements, commercial cooperation and M&A transactions. For a French counterparty, the jurisdiction rules of the Brussels I Regulation may affect the available forums if the parties have not agreed on a valid German court clause.

F. Practical implications for businesses

Before signing a contract

• identify the likely subject matter of a dispute;
• estimate the potential amount in dispute;
• check available specialist courts;
• compare first-instance and appellate jurisdiction;
• address the desired language;
• consider trade-secret protection;
• compare a state court with arbitration;
• ensure international validity of the jurisdiction clause;
• provide for changes in court organisation.

Before filing a claim

• verify subject-matter, local and functional jurisdiction;
• confirm the current court organisation;
• check value thresholds;
• identify the exact senate or chamber;
• review language and confidentiality applications;
• consider any waiver or submission by the opposing party;
• assess the available remedies and appellate route;
• review international jurisdiction and enforceability.

Commercial Court or arbitration?

A German Commercial Court may be attractive where the parties prefer a state court, specialist judges, a statutory appellate route, possible English-language proceedings and the enforcement mechanisms of state courts.

Arbitration may be preferable where confidentiality, procedural flexibility, neutral decision-makers, international enforcement or special arrangements for multiple parties are decisive. The correct choice depends on the transaction, the parties, the assets and the likely enforcement countries.

CTA: Are you drafting an international contract or planning litigation in Germany? Have the Commercial Court or Commercial Chamber, the value threshold, language and appellate route reviewed before the agreement is signed. Contact Stroschein & Makowka.