Court ruling could amend Germany’s science copyright

Transparency group was right to post BfR assessment on glyphosate safety, Cologne judgment confirms

A transparency organisation acted lawfully when it published the expert opinion of Germany’s Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) against the institute’s will, the Higher Regional Court of Cologne has ruled.

The BfR took transparency lobby group Frag den Staat (Ask the State) to court, saying that the group’s publication of BfR expertise on the safety of weed killer glyphosate constituted a copyright infringement. However, the court did not share this assessment—a decision that could lead to changes in German copyright law.