German court dismisses $6.1 billion investor lawsuit against Porsche SE
Porsche SE says the ruling leaves plaintiffs with no valid claim under a binding Federal Court decision.
Published
A German court has dismissed a $6.1 billion lawsuit brought by investors against Porsche SE, the company said.
Porsche SE said the Federal Court's decision is binding on lower courts and leaves the plaintiffs with no valid claim. The lawsuit stemmed from shareholders who alleged that Porsche SE informed capital markets too late about Volkswagen's diesel emissions scandal, according to Automotive News. In an earlier related ruling on March 29, 2023, the Stuttgart Higher Regional Court found that Porsche SE had not failed to inform markets about Volkswagen's use of a defeat device before the scandal became public, according to Insurance Journal.
The dismissal closes out the $6.1 billion claim, rather than simply confirming the earlier procedural win over a 5.4 billion euro damages theory. That the rejected claim is larger than the figure cited in the Federal Court confirmation suggests plaintiffs had broadened their damages calculation since the initial proceedings. Whether this ends the dispute depends on whether investors appeal or file a separate action, since German court decisions of this kind can still be contested at a higher level.