Gewerkschaft der Polizei – Bundespolizei v. Deutsche
Polizeigewerkschaft (case no. 1 BvR 1246/20)
Germany is known as a jurisdiction where ex parte
preliminary injunctions are relatively easy to obtain. But in
a June 3, 2020 decision
(case no. 1 BvR 1246/20), the German
Federal Constitutional Court ("FCC") highlighted the
importance of allowing a respondent to be heard in response to a
request for a preliminary injunction ("PI"). The FCC held
that the "procedural right to equality of arms," equal to
a fundamental right, is fulfilled only if the respondent has an
opportunity to comment on the allegations made in the PI
request. For example, if the arguments presented in the PI
request differ from those in a prior warning letter, then the
respondent's response letter cannot be the only submission
under consideration. In other words, if the prior warning
letter set forth the full scope of the petitioner's arguments,
then a full and complete response thereto would be
