Preview: Judge Brückner-Hofmann interview

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Preview: Judge Brückner-Hofmann interview

Johanna Brückner-Hofmann

The Düsseldorf District Court judge admits being upset when an appeal judgment is badly argued and discusses the 1,900% increase in design cases at her court

“There are a few cases in which the appeal judgment, in my view, is clearly wrong or badly argued,” says Johanna Brückner-Hofmann in reference to her decisions being overruled but there being no convincing reason in the findings.

Brückner-Hofmann, who chairs a three-member panel specialising in design and unfair competition law at the Düsseldorf District Court (Landgericht) in Germany, admits, however, that this is a rare occurrence. 

She and her co-panellists hear around 100 design cases and between 120 and 150 unfair competition disputes every year. In her early days as a judge, however, Brückner-Hofmann would hear no more than five design cases per year – 1,900% less than today’s 100. 

In this exclusive interview with the judge, who has worked at the court since 1995, you can discover:

Why her workload has increased and what her most significant cases have been;

How she views the appeal process, especially when her cases are overturned;

What she thinks about diversity and recruitment in the German judiciary;

How she handles working part-time in an increasingly demanding role;

What annoys her in court; and

How the German system differs to that of other countries.

The full interview will be published tomorrow, August 28. It will be the fourth in our series of judge interviews following our discussions with Mr Justice Arnold and the late Mr Justice Carr of the England and Wales High Court, and Lord Kitchin of the UK Supreme Court. 







more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

A $110 million US verdict against Apple and an appellate order staying a $39 million trademark infringement finding against Amazon were also among the top talking points
Attorneys are watching how AI affects trademark registrations and whether a SCOTUS ruling from last year will have broader free speech implications
Patent lawyers explain why they will be keeping an eye on the implications of a pharma case and on changes at the USPTO in the second half of 2025
The insensitive reaction to a UK politician crying on TV proves we have a long way to go before we can say we are tackling workplace wellbeing
Adrian Percer says he was impressed by the firm’s work on billion-dollar cases as well as its culture
In our latest interview with women IP leaders, Catherine Bonner at Murgitroyd discusses technology, training, and teaching
Developments included an update in the VAR dispute between Ballinno and UEFA, the latest CMS updates, and a swathe of market moves
The LMG Life Sciences Americas Awards is thrilled to present the 2025 shortlist
A new order has brought the total security awarded to a Canadian tech company to $45 million, the highest-ever by an Indian court in an IP case
Andrew Blattman reflects on how IP practices have changed and shares his hopes for increased AI use and better performance on the stock market
Gift this article