Who is the inventor of the Porsche 911? And are the heirs still entitled to money from the sale of recently produced luxury cars? The BGH is dealing with a case that has already caused quite a stir.
The heirs of the former Porsche chief designer Erwin Komenda are continuing their dispute over recognition and financial participation before the Federal Court of Justice (BGH).
On Thursday (11.00 a.m.) the highest civil judges in Germany will deal with copyright claims for an appropriate share in the economic success of the Porsche 911. It is about several million euros. It is unclear whether the first civil senate in Karlsruhe will give a verdict. So far, Komenda’s daughter Ingrid Steineck had failed in court. (Ref .: I ZR 222/20)
From the point of view of the Higher Regional Court (OLG) Stuttgart it has been proven that Komenda was the author of the external design of the body of the Porsche 356 in its original form. However, this only served as a suggestion for the 991 series of the successor model Porsche 911. This does not result in any entitlement to participation under the Copyright Act. Steineck could not prove that Komenda was a co-author of the design of the Porsche 911 in its original form. The daughter has appealed against the decision.
Contributions doubted
Porsche AG rejects all of Steineck’s claims. On the one hand, the Stuttgart-based carmaker has questioned Komenda’s contributions to the body designs in the course of the past. On the other hand, for reasons of the Austrian inheritance law relevant in this case, he did not consider the daughter to be entitled to sue at all.
According to the OLG ruling, the plaintiff Steineck limited her claims to a maximum of five million euros. They could well be higher if one were instead to determine a share per vehicle sold: After all, buyers for a Porsche 911 – depending on the equipment – can easily spend a six-figure amount.
The dispute between the Steineck family and Porsche dragged on for years. According to the OLG ruling in 2014, Komenda’s granddaughter held a press conference entitled “The Porsche swindle” to clarify who, in their opinion, was responsible for the drafts of what is known as the Porsche DNA. Komenda died in 1966.
The Porsche case is not the only one of its kind, the dispute also affects the parent company VW directly: In Braunschweig, the family wants to assert claims because of the design of the VW Beetle and its successor, the New Beetle. The car designer Ferdinand Porsche is considered to be the creator of the Beetle. Linked to all of this is the very fundamental question of whether auto designers have a copyright claim on the models they create.
Source From: Stern
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
