{
  "id": 7720949,
  "title": "Bundesgerichtshof: Worum geht es in dem Milliarden-Streit um Corona-Masken?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/bundesgerichtshof-worum-geht-es-in-dem-milliarden-streit-um-corona",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-16T06:10:43.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Handelsblatt",
    "slug": "handelsblatt",
    "url": "https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deutschland/bundesgerichtshof-worum-geht-es-in-dem-milliarden-streit-um-corona-masken/100254888.html"
  },
  "original_language": "de",
  "account": "The Bundesgerichtshof (Federal Court of Justice) is currently examining a billion-euro dispute between sellers of protective masks and the German federal government over the payment for FFP2 and surgical masks purchased during the COVID-19 pandemic. The controversy arose from the Bundesgesundheitsministerium's (Federal Ministry of Health) \"Open-House\" procedure in spring 2020, which allowed any interested party to sell FFP2 masks to the federal government for €4.50 each, a substantial price at the time. The government later refused to accept a significant portion of the masks and withdrew from the contracts, leading numerous sellers to sue.\n\nThe dispute concerns an estimated 2.3 billion euros, with around 90 lawsuits still pending against the federal government. The Landgericht Bonn and Oberlandesgericht Köln have already ruled in dozens of cases, and there are currently 15 final judgments in connection with the Open-House procedure. In four of these cases totaling €4.2 million, the federal government was found to be in the wrong, while in the remaining eleven cases worth €59.5 million, the government won.\n\nThe dispute primarily concerns the nordrhein-westfälische (North Rhine-Westphalia) region due to the Federal Ministry of Health's headquarters in Bonn. Some cases are now in their final stage before the BGH in Karlsruhe, where four cases are being heard on Wednesday, with five more pending. The BGH's decision is expected to address fundamental legal questions and potentially set a precedent for ongoing litigation. The dispute includes three lawsuits by mask sellers seeking to recover the agreed-upon purchase price from the federal government and one case where the federal government is seeking to recover a portion of a previously paid purchase price.",
  "summary": "Bei der Beschaffung von Schutzmasken zu Beginn der Corona-Pandemie griff der Staat zu umstrittenen Methoden. Rund 90 Klagen laufen heute noch dazu. Jetzt liegt die Sache in Karlsruhe.",
  "key_points": [
    "Federal Court of Justice examines billion-euro dispute over mask payments",
    "90 lawsuits pending against federal government in the case",
    "BGH decision expected to set legal precedent in mask sales controversy"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The German federal government's liability for billions in mask purchases during the pandemic hangs in the balance as the Federal Court of Justice weighs fundamental legal questions.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}