LD Munich, April 23, 2026, Order On Cost Security, UPC_CFI_617/2025

1 Key takeaways

FRAND security of defendant does not relieve claimant from providing cost security

A bank guarantee provided by a defendant, as part of an objection of compulsory licence under antitrust law, as security for any potential licence payment obligations towards the claimant and thus to avert an injunction claim asserted by the claimant (“FRAND security”), does not, in principle, relieve the claimant of the obligation to provide security for costs, even if the amount of the bank guarantee exceeds the amount of the security for costs. Neither does the bank guarantee constitute a valuable asset of the claimant to which the defendant may have recourse for recovery of his costs, nor does the provision of the bank guarantee allow the conclusion that the defendant is obliged to pay licence fees to the claimant against which he could offset a claim for recoverable costs (sec. 21).