Federal Court of Justice ruling rocks online coaching industry and declares contracts without official approval null and void
In its ruling of July 9, 2025, the Stuttgart Regional Court dealt with the question of whether a payment service provider must reimburse pre-trial legal fees if it has not executed a payment order on time in accordance with Section 675s of the German Civil Code (BGB).
Facts of the case
In the present case, a bank customer is demanding reimbursement of her attorney’s fees because her transfer order abroad was not credited to the recipient bank on time. The customer had placed the transfer order for EUR 57,000 on December 1, 2023, after which the bank transferred the amount to the correspondent bank on the same day in order to process the transfer order abroad. As the transfer did not arrive at the foreign recipient bank for a month, the customer’s lawyer had to intervene with the bank. The defendant bank argued that this was not its fault and that the money was with the correspondent bank. The correspondent bank did not forward the transfer due to suspected money laundering and transferred the money back to the customer. The customer is demanding reimbursement of the pre-trial legal fees.
Decision of the Stuttgart Regional Court
The Stuttgart Regional Court ruled in favor of the customer and decided that she was entitled to compensation under Section 280 of the German Civil Code (BGB).
Fault of the main bank due to breach of duty by the intermediary bank
According to the Stuttgart Regional Court, the bank did not execute the payment order on time and was in default pursuant to Section 286 (2) BGB. This constitutes a breach of duty pursuant to Section 675s BGB.
The bank cannot rely on the fault of the correspondent bank, as the correspondent bank is an intermediary appointed by the bank. Accordingly, intermediaries are to be regarded as vicarious agents of the payment service provider initially commissioned, meaning that the institution initially commissioned is responsible for the fault of an intermediary institution.
Furthermore, the banks did not provide any further details regarding the alleged suspicion of money laundering. This was only a general statement by the parties, which is not sufficient.
Reimbursement of pre-trial legal fees
The Stuttgart Regional Court also agrees with the customer’s decision to engage a lawyer to protect her rights. In this situation, this was necessary and appropriate in order to protect and enforce her rights, particularly in view of the amount involved. Accordingly, the legal fees incurred are reimbursable and do not preclude damages under Section 675s of the German Civil Code (BGB).
The bank cannot invoke the credit note either, as the customer still wanted to stick to her payment order and was entitled to the money credited to her account for transfer.
Significance of this decision
With this important ruling, the Stuttgart Regional Court has strengthened the claims for damages of consumers and companies. Banks and payment service providers cannot fall back on the argument that gross delays are typical in payment transactions. Even in cases of suspected money laundering, there must be concrete evidence to justify not executing the transfer or delaying it extremely.
In addition, the decision of the Stuttgart Regional Court emphasizes once again that consumers should not be concerned about seeking legal assistance in the event of delayed payment orders. Those affected will not be left with the legal fees if the engagement was necessary.
Attorney Sascha C Fürstenow will be happy to advise you on this topic and offers a free and non-binding initial assessment of your case in advance.
The legal advice in German was prepared by Ms. Dastan, an employee of the FÜRSTENOW law firm, and reviewed and finalized by attorney Fürstenow.