Illegal File Sharing and Family Ties

BGH I ZR 169/12

The German Federal Court had to decide on the liability of the holder of a private internet access point for the misuse of such access point by a third party for illegal file sharing online. In this particular case the holder was the father of a family and the third party was his full aged son who still lived with his parents. The court found that because of the family ties and the fact that the relevant persons lived under one roof the father could rely on his son not misusing his internet access and he was not required to monitor his son's online activities or take any other significant measures to prevent a misuse by him. The father was therefore found not liable for the illegal file sharing activities by his son.