Hanover/ Cologne, 29.04.25: The law firm activelaw has achieved an important success in press law before the Cologne Regional Court. In a lawsuit against a tabloid publisher, activelaw fought back against the spread of baseless rumors on behalf of a prominent person. The aim of the report was apparently to publicly discredit the person concerned by constructing an alleged extramarital relationship. To support this speculation, the publisher had also published paparazzi recordings.
The district court prohibited reporting with a preliminary injunction dated 28.04.2025 (28 O 109/25) — not yet final — and clarified: Rumors of affairs are likely to massively damage the public image of a married person, as such allegations are considered morally reprehensible by society. The mere creation of such a rumor is a serious invasion of privacy — regardless of whether it is true or not. According to the court, there was no discernible public interest in providing information.
In addition, the court followed activelaw's argument that the disseminated statements were inadmissible even if they were classified as rumor. This applies in particular even if they come from the area of gossip and the person concerned is generally open about their private life.
The court was particularly clear on another point: There was no objective evidence of the alleged affair.
Attorney Dr. Sven Dierkes from activelaw comments on the decision:
“The decision of the district court is to be welcomed.
The fact that someone shares their private life with the public, primarily through postings on social media, does not justify telling them an affair to satisfy their own readers' interest in gossip and gossip. This must apply in particular when the press makes use of the dissemination of supposedly appropriate narratives for the person concerned, but there is also not a single objectively comprehensible connection point for the rumor. This is because such framing is particularly serious in interfering with the general personal rights of the person concerned, which is stigmatized in the long term with the rumor. ”
