Type of refusal
Non-delivery with a counterparty in Germany
Non-delivery with a counterparty in Germany
When a counterparty in Germany fails to deliver, the other side is usually a registered company, a fund vehicle, or an individual acting through one. What can be established now is who legally holds the asset and what the public commercial register shows about that entity. The sequence of filing steps is determined from the file, not published here, and the same applies to other non-delivery cases we review.
Who is actually on the other side
The German commercial register, the Handelsregister, lists the registered name, legal form, registered seat, and appointed managing directors of a company. If the counterparty is a GmbH, a UG, or an AG, that filing tells you who currently has authority to act for it, and whether the entity is still active, in liquidation, or already deregistered. It does not tell you whether it holds the specific asset it promised to deliver, or where that asset currently sits.
Checking the register early matters more than checking it well. A director change, a change of registered seat, or an insolvency filing can happen quickly once a counterparty senses a claim is coming. Cross-reference what the register shows against the Germany jurisdiction summary and against any structure disclosed in the underlying contract clause pointing to arbitration, if one exists.
What to secure before the counterparty reacts
Before the counterparty reacts, preserve what fixes the deal as it stands now: the subscription agreement, delivery instructions, payment confirmations, and any written excuse already given, including a claim of force majeure. Screenshot the counterparty's public filings and any material describing the asset, since these can be edited once a dispute becomes visible.
Whether an asset can be frozen or otherwise secured before a decision on the merits depends on facts this page cannot assess; the availability of an interim measure is established from the file. A force majeure claim has to be tested against actual events, not accepted at face value; see how that argument is usually structured. A paid assessment through delivery and refund claims review is where that testing starts.
Where a judgment would have to be enforced
Where a judgment has to be enforced depends on where the counterparty holds assets, not where the case was heard. Germany is an EU member state, and a judgment from another EU member state is recognised there without a separate exequatur step [N144]. For a judgment from outside the EU, the 2019 Hague Judgments Convention entered into force for the EU, including Germany, on 1 September 2023, after the EU's accession on 29 August 2022 [N154]. Enforcement documents typically need an apostille, in force in Germany since 1966 [N409]. The route differs going the other way; see enforcement from Germany to the UK and enforcement into Germany.
This firm does not charge a result-only fee; its registration is checkable in the public register linked in the footer, the same way you should check anyone else, starting with how to verify a law firm.