Presiding Federal Court of Justice judge Prof. Dr. Peter Meier-Beck retires

Düsseldorf, October 13, 2021 – After decades working in prominent positions, Prof. Dr. Peter Meier-Beck, presiding judge at the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof), retired on September 30, 2021.

Prof. Dr. Peter Meier-Beck joined the higher judicial service of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in 1984 after completing his legal training. In 1987 he became a judge at Düsseldorf Regional Court (Landgericht) and in 1991 a judge at Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht). He returned to Düsseldorf Regional Court in 1993 and presided over a civil chamber responsible for patent disputes. He was named a judge at the Federal Court of Justice in 2000. Here, he was assigned to the X. Civil Senate, which is responsible for patent law. From 2009, he was a member of the Xa-Civil Senate, which was set up as a support panel for the X. Civil Senate. In addition, he was a member of the Cartel Senate from 2002, of which he was the deputy presiding judge from 2009. In 2010, he was finally named presiding judge at the Federal Court of Justice and presided over the X. Civil Senate. Nine years later, Prof. Dr. Peter Meier-Beck was appointed head of the newly created XIII.Civil Senate and the Cartel Senate. He will continue his work as an honorary professor at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, which he has carried out since 2005. He will also continue to speak at national and international events on patent and antitrust law, enriching them with his preeminent expertise.

“With Prof. Dr. Peter Meier-Beck, a judge influential in patent law around the world is bidding farewell to active practice,” says Gottfried Schüll, patent attorney and partner at C&F. The firm primarily associates him with his work in connection with standard essential patents (SEPs). SEP proceedings are among the most high-stakes proceedings in the world when it comes to infringement cases due to their economic importance in many technological industries. As a firm with a high level of expertise in this field, C&F has been a key player in these: the world’s first SEP proceedings were initiated in 2000 by C&F in Germany. Since then, the extremely significant global SEP proceedings have been heard in Germany. Prof. Dr. Peter Meier-Beck contributed hugely to this development. “He played a central role from the very beginning of his career at Düsseldorf Regional Court and especially in SEP patent infringement proceedings,” Schüll continued. “In the numerous nullity suits in which our firm has appeared before the Federal Court of Justice, Prof. Dr. Peter Meier-Beck has always impressed us not only with his exceptional legal expertise but also with his technical understanding,” adds Dr. Arwed Burrichter, patent attorney and partner at C&F. “We wish him all the best for this new phase of his life and for his future work.”

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