Raue has reached a success at the Higher Regional Court of Hamburg for the film production company ndF: Berlin and TV station WDR. The Higher Regional Court confirmed a decision of the Hamburg Regional Court in 2016, according to which the feature film “Die Auserwählten (The Chosen)” produced by ndF: Berlin does not violate the plaintiff’s personal rights.
The film “Die Auserwählten” deals with the abuse scandal at the Odenwald School. The lawsuit had been brought forward by a former student who felt that his right of personality had been violated. He was of the opinion that he had been a role model for one of the main characters in the film and demanded a ban on broadcasting central scenes of the film. The Hamburg Regional Court did not follow his opinion and dismissed the suit in 2016.
The Hamburg Higher Regional Court now confirmed the judgment of the Regional Court on the grounds that a publication ban would not be justified because the plaintiff’s personal rights had not been seriously violated. The artistic freedom in a fictional film carries so much weight that publication bans are only imposed in exceptional cases and in the case of serious violations of personality rights.
A revision was not permitted.
(15 October 2019)