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In its ruling of February 20, 2025 (I ZR 16/24), the BGH made a fundamental decision on the copyright protectability of consumer goods. In a total of three appeal proceedings (I ZR 16/24, I ZR 17/24, I ZR 18/24), a decision had to be made on the copyright protection of four different sandal models from the Birkenstock Group: "Arizona", "Madrid", "Gizeh" and the "Boston" clog. The subject of the proceedings I ZR 16/24 was the question of whether the sandal model "Arizona" and the model "Madrid", known from the Hollywood film "Barbie" among others, are protected as works of applied art pursuant to Section 2 para. 1 no. 4, para. 2 UrhG and whether there is copyright imitation by competitors. The BGH confirmed the decision of the lower court and denied copyright protection. With this decision, the BGH clarifies the requirements under EU law for the protection of works of applied art and specifies the distinction between copyright and design protection.
Liability for defective products is being massively tightened. The new Product Liability Directive, adopted by the European Parliament in March 2024, will almost completely change the strict liability system that has been in place for over 40 years.