The new JUVE Handbook of Commercial Law Firms 2024/2025 arrived in the mail today and we’re in it! Apparently we were ‘often recommended’ in the field of transport and maritime law. For us as a small commercial law boutique, it is not a matter of course that recommendations have brought us into the rankings of JUVE and Legal500, the two most important rankings for commercial law firms in our opinion. Thank you!

 

One of the greatest privileges of our job is to see and learn new things every day. Contact with other cultures, legal systems, alternative decision-making methods and other ways to negotiate is simply exciting.  In addition to contract and crisis negotiations, our tasks abroad often include the assertion of claims, often arising from commercial relations or transport damage. If legal proceedings become necessary, we manage these for our clients. It can happen that we travel all over the world to pursue our clients’ interests locally. This week I am in Canada for a mediation and our colleague Dr. Dansalia is in Chandigarh, India, to support our local colleague there.

One element of proceedings in common law countries that fascinates me because of the complexity, the effort involved and the challenges for lawyers and clients are the discoveries or depositions.

In Canada and other common law countries, civil proceedings involve a stage called “discoveries” which is a pre-trial taking of evidence. This is where both sides exchange information and evidence to understand each other’s case better. It includes oral examinations (called “examinations for discovery”) where lawyers question the other side’s witnesses under oath to gather facts. This very complex process leads to an impressive investigation of the case.

In Germany or other civil law countries, civil proceedings do not have a similar discovery phase. Instead, the “taking of evidence” happens during the trial itself. Here, the judge plays a more active role in gathering and examining evidence. Witnesses and experts present their testimony directly to the judge, who decides what evidence is relevant and admissible. The process is more controlled by the court, with less back-and-forth between the parties outside of the trial. However, the parties have a great deal of influence over which facts they present and offer as evidence. The court can then only take evidence on the facts presented and by taking the evidence offered by the parties.

So, the main difference is that common law proceedings emphasize pre-trial information exchange additionally to the process of taking evidence during the trial itself, while in many civil law proceedings, the evidence is primarily gathered and assessed during the trial under the judge’s guidance.

From our experience with proceedings in common law and civil law countries, the procedure with discoveries or depositions is more complex, longer and more costly. Sometimes it may lead to earlier settlement. If there is a choice, for example in arbitration proceedings or in cases where there is a place of jurisdiction  in both systems, the time and cost factor probably argues for the civil law taking of evidence.

Am I to shaped by my roots in the civil law system? Or can this be objectively determined? What is your experience?

Legal 500, one of the leading international law firm rankings, in 2020 again ranks KUSS Rechtsanwälte among the best commercial law firms in Germany in the field of Transport Law.

Based on its research in the editorial section Legal 500 has come to the conclusion (our translation):

Kuss Rechtsanwälte Partnerschaft mbb is highly specialized in the field of International Transport, Forwarding and Warehousing Law. The focus of activities of the four-member team of bar certified specialists (Fachanwälte) lies in complex cases of major transport damage as well as in the conduct and defense of recovery claims. In addition, the team around Robert Kuss and Corinna Kuss advises policyholders and insurers on transport insurance coverage. A particular added value regarding the international activities of the law firm lies in the legal advice and consulting offered in English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian.”

We were particularly pleased with the references:

The law firm is very competent, reliable and always adheres to the given schedules. In addition, the team is characterized by patience and perseverance even in stressful situations.”

The law firm is our first address in Germany in the field of Transport Law. Especially in the field of road transport the team is unbeatable in terms of efficiency, transparency, expertise and experience.”

‘Robert Kuss is outstanding in competence and client service and has excellent negotiating skills.”

You can find the ranking under the following link:

https://www.legal500.de/c/deutschland/transport/transportrecht/

Maxim Miskewych was awarded the title of a Certified Specialist for International Business Law by the Cologne Bar Association.

A bar certified specialist (Fachanwalt) is a lawyer with proven expertise and practical experience in a particular area of law. The title is awarded by the Regional Bar Associations after having intensively examined whether the necessary prerequisites are fulfilled according to the Rules on Certified Specialist Lawyers (Fachanwaltsordnung). The lawyer has to demonstrate knowledge and skills in his specialty area reaching far beyond those generally gained during education, training and practical job experience.

Prior to achieving the status of specialist, the lawyer has to attend a 120 hour specializing course and pass several examinations. Moreover, the handling of a certain number of cases in the specialized area must be proven. A lawyer bearing the title “bar certified specialist” has to prove every year to have further expanded his expertise to the prescribed extent.

The German Rules on Bar Certified Specialist Lawyers (Fachanwaltsordnung) provide for a bar certified specialist in international commercial and business law to demonstrate special knowledge in the areas of

  1. conflict of laws of contractual and non-contractual obligations,
  2. international civil procedure and arbitration law,
  3. internationally harmonized commercial law,
  4. internationally harmonized corporate law,
  5. European state aid and competition law,
  6. main features of the regulations on the fight against corruption, fraud and money laundering in international legal transactions,
  7. main features in the realm of international tax law,
  8. main features of comparative law.

We congratulate Maxim Miskewych on successfully obtaining this title, which documents his remarkable competence in this demanding and important field of law.

Die Dokumentationspflichten im Hinblick auf die Arbeitszeiten von LKW-Fahrern sind in der Regel hinreichend bekannt. Dies gilt jedoch nicht unbedingt für die Folgen eines Verstoßes. Diese können empfindlich sein. Es können Bußgeldbescheide bis in den sechsstelligen Bereich drohen.

Sowohl Unternehmer als auch Fahrer sind gesetzlich dazu verpflichtet, für die Funktionsfähigkeit von Kontrollgeräten (Tachograph/Fahrtenschreiber) in den Lkw und deren ordnungsgemäß Nutzbarkeit zu sorgen. Darüber hinaus muss auch die ordnungsgemäße Funktion und Nutzung der Fahrerkarte sichergestellt werden.

Unternehmer sind ferner verpflichtet, die Arbeitszeitnachweise (Schaublätter, Aufzeichnungen, digitale Daten und Ausdrucke) ein Jahr lang gut geordnet aufzubewahren und auf Verlangen der zuständigen Aufsichtsbehörde (Gewerbeaufsichtsamt) vorzulegen oder einzusenden. Die Aufsichtsbehörden führen stichprobenartige Kontrollen durch, um die Einhaltung der Arbeitsschutzbestimmungen zu überprüfen.

Kommt der Unternehmer seinen Dokumentations- und Aufbewahrungspflichten nicht nach, so drohen ihm Geldbußen in Höhe von 750,00 € je 24-Stunden-Zeitraum und Fahrer, für die keine Nachweise vorgelegt werden können. Nicht selten werden von den Behörden daher Bußgeldbescheide im sechsstelligen Bereich erlassen.

Beim Verlust oder Diebstahl der Fahrerkarte oder der Arbeitszeitnachweise ist sofortiges Handeln geboten. Spätestens beim Erhalt der Aufforderung der Aufsichtsbehörde, Arbeitszeitnachweise vorzulegen oder einzusenden, empfiehlt es sich, einen Rechtsanwalt einzuschalten und nicht abzuwarten, bis ein Bußgeldbescheid erlassen worden ist. Im Vorhinein kann in der Regel die Höhe des Bußgeldbescheides außergerichtlich und kostensparend signifikant reduziert werden.

Maxim Miskewych, Rechtsanwalt

Vanessa Steinbacher was awarded the title of bar certified specialist in transportation and forwarding law.

A bar certified specialist is a lawyer with proven expertise and practical experience in a particular area of law. The title is awarded by the Regional Bar Associations after having intensively examined whether the necessary prerequisites are fulfilled according to the Rules on Bar Certified Specialist Lawyers (Fachanwaltsordnung). The lawyer has to demonstrate knowledge and skills in his specialty area reaching far beyond those generally gained during education, training and practical job experience. Prior to achieving the status of specialist, the lawyer has to attend a 120 hour specializing course and pass several examinations. Moreover, the handling of a certain number of cases in the specialized area must be proven. A lawyer bearing the title “bar certified specialist” has to prove every year to have further expanded his expertise to the prescribed extent.

Congratulations Vanessa!

Tanja Pennekamp has recently finished her further training as a “certified compliance officer”.

Tanja assists her international German and Swiss clients in building up and improving their compliance management systems, designs and leads training programs at all levels and is conducting internal investigations in case of serious compliance issues. She furthermore serves her clients as an external compliance officer.

If you have any questions regarding compliance matters, please contact us!

On July 18th the first Cologne Cargo Claims Conference will take place in Cologne. The CCCC is intended for risk managers, underwriters and Claims handler involved in in the prevention and management of international cargo claims. Download Flyer here

December 2013

Our Hamburg office is now located in the Miramar House, Schopenstehl 15,20095 Hamburg.
The office is run by Robert Kuss, who will be working at both locations in Cologne and Hamburg.

November 2013
KUSS  Rechtsanwälte GbR is now KUSS Rechtsanwälte Partnerschaft mbB.  This registered partnership company with limited professional liability has been introduced in July 2013 a variant to the partnership company, which was created as an alternative to the German Limited Liability Partnership LLP). This partnership with limited professional liability towards the creditors, for any damages resulting from faulty professionalism is limited to the corporate assets. Personal liability of each partner is excluded. In return, each  Rechtsanwalts-Partnerschaftsgesellschaft mbB maintains a professional liability insurance with a minimum coverage of € 2.5 million.