Trademarks, data protection and terms and conditions are the services companies outside Europe ask us for most often, and they have their own pages on this site. The firm advises on the whole of commercial legal protection and internet law in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and the areas below are available to English-speaking clients in the same way, on request and at fees agreed in advance. The detailed descriptions are on our German website matutis.de, the links in this text lead there.
Design protection
A registered Community design protects the appearance of a product in the whole EU for up to 25 years, and the unregistered Community design protects it for three years from first disclosure in the EU without any filing. For a product launch in Europe the registered design is cheap, fast and often more useful than a trademark. We file Community designs with the EUIPO and German designs with the DPMA and act as representative for applicants outside the EU, in the same way as for trademarks. German description at Designschutz.
Copyright
German copyright law differs from US and UK law in points that matter for foreign companies, from the absence of a work-for-hire doctrine to the mandatory remuneration of authors and the strict rules on photographs and music on websites. We advise on licence agreements under German law, on the use of content, images and software in Germany and on the defence against warning letters for copyright infringement, which are sent to foreign website operators in large numbers. German description at Urheberrecht.
Competition and advertising law
Advertising directed at the German market is governed by the Unfair Competition Act (UWG), which competitors and consumer associations enforce themselves through warning letters and injunctions, without any authority being involved. Price advertising, comparative advertising, environmental claims, influencer marketing and the design of online shops are the areas where foreign companies most often receive such letters. We review campaigns before launch and respond to warning letters. German description at Wettbewerbsrecht.
Protection of know-how and trade secrets
Under the German Trade Secrets Act (GeschGehG) a company can enforce its trade secrets only if it has taken reasonable confidentiality measures, which a court will examine. We draft non-disclosure agreements under German law, confidentiality clauses for employees and partners and the internal measures that make the protection enforceable. German description at Know-how-Schutz.
Legal notice service and address protection
Every website and every social media account addressing Germany or Austria must carry a legal notice with a postal address. For sole traders and small companies that do not want to publish a private address, and for foreign companies that need an address in the EU for this purpose, we provide a legal notice address through our services at impressumservice.eu and impressumservice.at, and for Switzerland at adressschutz.ch. These sites are in German.
Internal reporting channel under the Whistleblower Protection Act
Companies with 50 or more employees in Germany must operate an internal reporting channel under the Whistleblower Protection Act (HinSchG), which implements the EU Whistleblowing Directive, and the same applies in Austria and Switzerland under their respective laws. We operate the reporting channel as an external law firm for an annual flat fee based on the number of employees, with group models for companies with several entities. German description at anwaltliche-meldestelle.de.
All of these matters are handled in English. If you are not sure which area your question belongs to, use the contact form and describe the situation in a few sentences, we tell you within one working day whether and how we can help and what it will cost.