- Specialist lawyer for intellectual property rights
- Advice at the highest level
- Specialized in warning letters in competition law
Lawyer helps with Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb warning letter
Lawyer Peter Weiler
Your contact person
Lawyer Peter Weiler Specialist lawyer for intellectual property rights
Experienced in warnings from the Association for Social Competition
- Specialist lawyer for intellectual property rights
- Years of experience in the defense against warnings from the Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb
- Free initial consultation in the event of warnings from the Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb
- Available for you nationwide
How we work with you
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Submit warning
Submit your warning via our contact form. Please feel free to describe the background to your case. We will usually get back to you on the day of the request.
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Free advice
We take a look at the warning letter. One of our lawyers specializing in cease-and-desist letters will then contact you and discuss the prospects of success of your case with you. The consultation is free of charge.
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Our offer
Immediately after the initial consultation, you will receive our order documents, with which we will once again confirm in writing what we have discussed. You can then consider at your leisure whether you want to continue with us.
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We get started
We will start work and take the necessary steps to successfully defend you against the warning letter. We will keep you transparently informed at all times about the progress of the matter up to the final deletion.
Who is behind the
Association for Social Competition?
The Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb e.V. (VSW) is a registered association in Germany that promotes fair competition between companies and institutions. The association was founded in 1949 and is based in Berlin. The VSW is a recognized consumer protection organization and works closely with authorities and other organizations to achieve its goals.
What exactly does the Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb e.V. do?
The Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb e.V. (VSW) is a registered association in Germany that campaigns for fair competition between companies and institutions. Its main tasks lie in the area of competition law and consumer protection legislation.
The VSW pursues the goal of ensuring compliance with laws and rules in competition and combating unfair practices. This also includes the prevention of unfair advertising, such as misleading or comparative advertising and breaches of data protection law.
The association's members include companies from various industries as well as associations, institutions and individuals who want to protect fair competition. The VSW is a recognized consumer protection organization and works closely with authorities and other organizations to achieve its goals.
What are the most frequent warnings issued by the Verein Sozialer Wettbewerb e.V.?
The Verein Sozialer Wettbewerb e.V. is a competition association that campaigns for the protection of fair and social competition. It therefore has the right to take action against companies that violate competition law provisions such as antitrust law and the Act against Unfair Competition (UWG) . Specifically, the following infringements can be cautioned:
Misleading advertising: If an advertisement contains false or misleading statements that are intended to mislead the consumer, the Association for Social Competition can take action against it.
Violations of information obligations: In online retail, certain information such as prices, shipping costs or the right of withdrawal must be clearly stated. Violations of this can result in a warning.
Inadmissible advertising claims: Advertising claims must not be discriminatory, inadmissibly comparative or inappropriate. The Association for Social Competition can take action against such statements.
Violations of consumer protection laws: If companies violate consumer protection laws such as the Distance Selling Act or the Product Safety Act, the Association for Social Competition can issue a warning.
What do I need to bear in mind when issuing a warning?
1. Under no circumstances should you sign a cease-and-desist declaration too hastily . However, take the warning seriously. We recommend having the warning letter checked by an experienced lawyer in order to discuss a strategy for further action together.
2. Be sure to observe the deadlines set in the warning letter. If you let them pass without reacting, you could face legal proceedings with further costs.
3. Take precautions. If the warning letter proves to be justified, you must also take precautions to avoid the alleged infringements in the future. For this reason, you should adapt the offers and/or legal texts, for example.
Let a specialist lawyer advise you on the steps to take.
Is the Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb e.V. actively legitimized?
The active legitimation of an association refers to the authorization to issue warnings on behalf of its members. For the VSW, this arises from Section 8 (3) No. 2 UWG. According to this, associations whose purpose is the promotion of commercial or independent professional interests are entitled to take action against infringements of competition law. The associations collectively represent the interests of their members, who in turn are in competition with the warned party. If the claims asserted are valid, there is a risk of an interim injunction being issued to provisionally secure the injunctive relief. You should therefore act within the deadline set by the associations, even if this is very short. Whether or not the right to sue ultimately exists is always a question of the individual case. If the association cannot prove that it has enough members in the area in which it is issuing a warning, it may be denied the right to take action. If you are also confronted with a warning from the Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb e.V., you should therefore seek legal advice.
What claims does VSW assert in its warnings?
The purpose of a warning letter from VSW under competition law is to draw the infringer's attention to his actions and to request that he rectify them and refrain from doing so in the future. If the infringer has suffered damage as a result of the infringement, compensation is demanded. In addition, there are the costs for the warning itself.
Injunctive relief
In most cases, the main objective of the warning letter is to cease and desist the infringement. VSW asserts this line with the warning letter and requests the warned party to submit a declaration of discontinuance with penalty clause within a usually short period of time. In it, the person being warned undertakes to remedy the infringement and to refrain from doing so in future. If the warning is justified, you should not let this deadline pass under any circumstances, as otherwise there is a risk that the association will apply for an injunction.
Claims for damages
If, in addition to the injunction, you are asked to pay compensation for damages allegedly caused by the infringement, contact a specialist lawyer for intellectual property rights immediately. Often, the damages are calculated far too high or the connection between the infringement and the damage has not been sufficiently explained, so that in the end you do not have to pay anything.
Reimbursement of warning costs
In addition to the claim to cease and desist the act under competition law, VSW is demanding reimbursement of the costs incurred as a result of the warning. The warning costs are incurred in addition to any claim for damages. The amount of the warning costs is, depending on the value of the object, often in the low three-digit range. Even if the costs seem relatively low, it is definitely worth defending yourself in the event of an unjustified warning letter.
Because even if the warned party signs the cease-and-desist declaration with penalty clause out of fear of a confrontation and pays the costs demanded, they run the risk of a high contractual penalty. If the person being warned violates the agreement made in the cease-and-desist declaration, a contractual penalty of several thousand euros is usually due. In a free initial consultation, we can clarify which course of action is appropriate in your case.
What does the VSW demand?
A warning letter from VSW usually demands the removal of an unlawful situation and the submission of a cease-and-desist declaration. Specifically, the warning letter usually demands the following:
1. elimination of the conduct complained of: The party receiving the warning is requested to immediately cease the conduct complained of and to ensure that it is not repeated in the future.
2. submission of a cease-and-desist declaration: The warned party is requested to submit a cease-and-desist declaration subject to penalty. With this declaration, the warned party undertakes to refrain from the conduct complained of in the future and to pay a contractual penalty in the event of a breach of this obligation.
3. reimbursement of warning costs: The warned party is requested to reimburse the costs incurred as a result of the warning. This includes, in particular, the warning party's legal fees.
How do I react to a warning letter from the Association for Social Competition?
The claim for injunctive relief asserted by VSW can only be fulfilled by submitting a statement to cease and desist with penalty clause. As VSW usually only sets a short deadline for the submission of this declaration, quick action is advisable in any case. Otherwise, there is a risk of an interim injunction being issued, which automatically leads to higher costs. Nevertheless, we advise against signing the enclosed cease-and-desist declaration without first checking it. This is because a cease-and-desist declaration is a contract that is valid for life. Take advantage of our free initial consultation to find out whether the claims asserted by VSW are justified and whether the proposed contractual penalty is appropriate. Do not ignore the warning letter under any circumstances. After the deadline set in the warning letter has expired, VSW will in most cases enforce its members' claims in court. This can unnecessarily prolong the matter and cause increased costs.
Sign a cease-and-desist declaration?
Signing the cease-and-desist declaration without seeking legal advice from a specialist lawyer for media law can be expensive. Although the legal dispute is initially settled out of court by issuing the cease-and-desist declaration, it is often the case that the warning was not justified at all or the agreed contractual penalty was set far too high. Take advantage of our free initial consultation and send us your warning letter. We will show you which steps you need to take in detail before submitting the cease-and-desist declaration and, if you instruct us, we will provide you with appropriate instructions. In the event that you instruct us, we will submit a modified cease-and-desist declaration on your behalf.
Pay warning costs?
If you have decided to sign the (modified) cease-and-desist declaration after consulting with the specialist lawyer, you have another decision to make: To pay the warning costs or not? If you do not pay the requested costs, VSW must assert the claim for reimbursement of the warning costs in court by means of an action for payment.
While the lawyer's and court costs are then "only" calculated from the warning costs and not from the higher value of the injunction in dispute on which the warning is based. However, the money can be claimed subsequently as part of an action for costs. If the court continues to rule against the warned party, the latter must also pay the fees incurred on both sides.
What happens now?
Have you received a warning letter from VSW? Then take advantage of our free initial consultation now. This will allow you to find out whether the warning letter sent by VSW is justified and how you can best respond. Do not simply sign the cease-and-desist declaration sent to you, but let us check whether the cease-and-desist declaration can be adapted or whether you may not have to pay anything at all because the warning is unfounded or an abuse of rights. After you have described the case to us and we have given you a recommendation for action, you can decide at your leisure whether you want to instruct us. If you decide to do so, you will receive effective representation at fair flat-rate prices.
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