Die Business Judgment Rule im Prozess

This thesis examines the so-called business judgement rule from a procedural point of view. Since this is not only of interest to corporate law experts, it provides a substantive law overview of the legal structure of managerial liability in Germany as a basis for the ensuing procedural analysis. Taking into account the legal situation in the US from a comparative legal perspective, the study examines the procedural effects of the business judgement rule in US civil litigation and shows that the business judgement rule gains importance in different phases of civil proceedings with different requirements regarding the burden of proof and the pleading standard. A comparison with US law shows that the reception of the business judgement rule in Germany hasn’t yet taken these details into account. Furthermore, the thesis identifies difficulties in this respect by applying the prevailing understanding of the principles of the burden of proof in Germany, and recommends legislative action.