In its ruling of February 21, 2018, the Higher Regional Court of Thuringia decided that an Erfurt restaurateur was not entitled to monetary compensation (case reference: 7 U 471/17).
Although MDR had violated the restaurateur’s personal rights through its reporting, the violation was not so serious that the payment of monetary compensation would be necessary.
MDR expresses suspicion of mafia affiliation
In November 2015, MDR broadcast a television report entitled “Province of the Bosses – The Mafia in Central Germany”.
It reported on the activities of the Italian mafia in Germany.
In the same context, pictures of the anonymous Erfurt restaurateur were shown, who, according to the MDR, was a member of the “Ndrangheta”.
Although the restaurateur was shown anonymously, he was still identifiable from the overall context.
Report available in the media library and on YouTube
The report was available online in the MDR media library and was also occasionally distributed by third parties on YouTube.
Due to the violation of his personal rights, the restaurateur claimed monetary compensation from both MDR and the journalists involved.
In addition, he demanded reimbursement of his legal fees for the pre-trial warnings.
Partial success before the Erfurt Regional Court
The lawsuit was partially successful before the Erfurt Regional Court.
The regional court awarded the injured restaurateur compensation for his legal fees.
However, the Erfurt Regional Court dismissed the rest of the claim.
Both the restaurateur and MDR appealed against the ruling.
OLG Thuringia: No claim for monetary compensation or reimbursement of legal fees against MDR
However, only MDR’s appeal was successful.
The 7th Civil Senate of the Thuringian Higher Regional Court dismissed the action in its entirety.
Like the Regional Court, it saw no legal basis for awarding monetary compensation after weighing up all the circumstances of the case.
Although the MDR had violated the personal rights of the restaurateur through the television report, this violation alone was not sufficient for the award of a monetary compensationclaim.
No monetary compensation despite recognizability of the restaurateur
In its ruling, the court also respected the fact that the restaurateur was portrayed as recognizable to a limited group of people despite being made anonymous.
However, the allegation of mafia affiliation was not presented as a proven fact, but merely as a suspicion.
According to the Thuringian judges, MDR was also fundamentally entitled to report on suspicions on the basis of its research findings.
MDR not responsible for warning costs to third parties
However, the Senate also included a number of other aspects in its assessment.
Ultimately, the restaurateur was not entitled to compensation for his legal fees.
Unlike the Erfurt Regional Court, the judges did not consider the MDR to be responsible for the costs incurred.
The warning costs of the action against the third parties who published the video on YouTube could not be attributed to them.