Berlin, 24 June 2026. Redeker Sellner Dahs has scored a victory for Autobahn GmbH des Bundes before Naumburg Superior Regional Court (OLG). In proceedings seeking an interim injunction, the 9th Civil Division established that administrative support for public procurement procedures is not solely a domain reserved for law firms, but may also be provided by procurement service providers other than lawyers.
The proceedings emanated from a Europe‑wide tender put out by Autobahn GmbH des Bundes for administrative support of numerous procurement procedures relating to the construction of federal trunk roads. A law firm operating nationwide and specialising in public procurement law had seized this tender as an opportunity to seek an injunction under the German Act against Unfair Competition (UWG). It forwarded the view that the procurement services put out to tender essentially constitute legal services which, under the German Legal Services Act (RDG), are primarily restricted to the legal profession. Halle Regional Court had initially upheld with this view, granting an interim injunction (judgement of 18 December 2026 – 8 O 55/25, NZBau 2026, 222).
Naumburg Superior Regional Court reversed a judgment handed down by the lower court, dismissing the application for an injunction (judgment of 18 June 2026 – 9 U 8/26). The Court could not discern any infringement of the Legal Services Act (RDG). Autobahn GmbH was therefore, in the opinion of the Court, entitled to open the tender to procurement service providers other than lawyers. The procurement services put out to tender predominantly revolved around administrative tasks and hence, for the most part, were not legal services in the meaning of Section 2(1) of the Legal Services Act (RDG). Insofar as legal services nevertheless fell under the subject matter of tenders in individual cases, procurement service providers other than lawyers are permitted to provide these as ancillary services in accordance with Section 5(1) of the Legal Services Act (RDG).
In the recent past, numerous cases have come to light in which interim injunctions have been obtained at first court instances against procurement service providers other than lawyers or public contracting authorities. In actual practice, public contracting authorities frequently engage procurement service providers that are not lawyers in order to carry out procurement procedures effectively and efficiently. Given all this, the decision rendered by Naumburg Superior Regional Court is of special significance: the 9th Civil Division is the first competition division of a superior regional court to expressly rule on the structuring and design of procurement support services in a manner compliant with the Legal Services Act (RDG). Meanwhile, the main proceedings are still ongoing before Halle Regional Court.
Redeker lawyers Dr Thomas Stickler, Dr Tassilo Schröck and Caroline Glasmacher, LL.M. (Melbourne) have been acting as counsel for Autobahn GmbH des Bundes in this case since the appeal proceedings as well as in the main proceedings still pending before Halle Regional Court.
