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Where can a trademark owner sue if a foreign online retailer infringes his trademark? The Federal Court of Justice has changed its case law and strengthened the position of trademark owners in the event of cross-border infringements on the internet.
International jurisdiction in EU trademark law
With its Decision of 22.10.2025 – Ref. I ZR 220/24 (LA BIOSTHETIQUE) has made an important clarification regarding international jurisdiction for trademark infringements on the internet. The ruling is relevant for all trademark owners who want to enforce their laws against online traders based in other EU countries.
What is it about?
A Danish-based operator of an online store offered numerous cosmetic products on her German website that were labeled with the trademarks of a German cosmetics company. These were original products, the sale of which was generally permitted. However, the way the products were presented in the online store was damaging to the company’s reputation: missing product images, no instructions for use, exaggeratedly advertised discounts and misleading price information. The brand owner sued in Germany for injunctive relief and information.
The key question: Can lawsuits be filed in Germany at all?
In actions for infringement of EU trademarks, the question regularly arises as to where the trademark owner can bring an action. In addition to the defendant’s registered office, the place of infringement also comes into consideration. But where is this place if someone advertises and offers goods on the Internet from abroad that are aimed at German consumers?
The new line of the Federal Court of Justice
Previously, the Federal Court of Justice had taken a different view in its 2017 decision on perfume brands: According to this, the decisive factor for jurisdiction was where the provider had initiated the process of publishing its offer – i.e. typically at its registered office abroad. The location from which the website could be accessed was irrelevant.
The Federal Court of Justice has now expressly abandoned this case law and followed the line of the European Court of Justice. The new rule reads:
Anyone who directs advertising and sales offers to consumers in a particular country via the Internet commits the infringing act there – regardless of where the provider is based, where the server is located or where the advertised goods are located.
What does this mean in practice?
The ruling is good news for trademark owners. If a foreign online retailer clearly targets German consumers with its products – for example by having a German website, the German language or a .de domain – trademark owners can sue directly in Germany. They do not have to take the often more arduous route abroad.
In the specific case, the defendant operated its website under a .de domain and in German. This made it clear to the Federal Court of Justice that the offer was aimed at consumers in Germany and that German courts had jurisdiction.
Limits to the right to information
However, the judgment also contains a restriction for trademark owners. The plaintiff not only wanted to know which goods the defendant had sold, but also the names and addresses of its suppliers. This part of the claim for information was rejected.
The reason: the actual trademark infringement did not lie in the products themselves, but solely in the way they were presented by the online retailer. The suppliers had nothing to do with it. In such cases, it would be disproportionate to provide the trademark owner with information about the entire supply chain. The right to information serves to combat infringements – not to track down distribution partners who may have infringed contracts.
Conclusion
The ruling creates clarity for the practice of cross-border online trade. Trademark owners can sue directly in Germany in the event of infringements by foreign online providers that are (also) aimed at German consumers. The Federal Court of Justice is thus now also following the ECJ.
The exciting question remains as to when a retailer will turn to German traffic.
Due to the advantageous cost reimbursement claims for trademark owners in Germany, Germany should therefore continue to be an attractive court location for many trademark owners – including those from abroad.
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