The Bund files a complaint in the legal dispute over mask deliveries
Background of the dispute is the procurement of protective masks at the beginning of the Corona-Pandemie. The former Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) guaranteed unlimited acceptance of masks from suppliers at a price of 4.50 Euro per FFP2-mask during the global crisis in 2020. Later, the ministry refused payment in part, among other things, with reference to faulty or delayed deliveries.
The court decided now that the affected supplier has a claim for payment of the purchase price. The Higher Regional Court Cologne overturned part of the judgment of the Bonn District Court and ruled in favor of the plaintiff.
In connection with payments for Corona protective masks, there are mass litigations nationwide between the Federal Government and mask manufacturers in courts - also in Cologne. Whether other Civil Senates of the Higher Regional Court Cologne, in which there are also pending appeals, will assess the issues differently, remains open, the Ministry shared. Through the final review, the "controversial legal issues" should now be clarified.
- The supplier, affected by the disputed payments for Corona protective masks, initially took the case to the Federal Court of Justice, but later decided to resort to the Cologne Appeal Court.
- The League, a political party in Germany, has condemned the Federal Government's handling of the lawsuit, calling it a 'masquerade delivery' of liabilities to private companies.
- BMG, the Federal Ministry of Health, has received a complaint from various mask manufacturers regarding the payment issue and the subsequent lawsuit.
- The Cologne Appeal Court ruling in favor of the plaintiff could potentially have a significant impact on similar lawsuits pending at the Cologne Appeal Court and even at the Federal Court of Justice.
- Jens Spahn, the former Federal Health Minister and a member of the CDU, has yet to publicly comment on the recent developments in the court case.
- The Cologne Appeal Court's ruling comes at a time when the world is still grappling with the ongoing global crisis caused by Coronavirus and governments are continuously seeking to balance the needs of healthcare and the economy.
- In light of the ongoing crisis, stakeholders like mask manufacturers and governments are closely monitoring the course of the lawsuit as they seek to navigate the complexities of mask procurement and delivery processes.
