Labor court proceedings are of great importance in Germany. Employees and employers often meet again in court, especially when it comes to the termination of their employment relationship. The German labor court procedure has several particularities that must be observed by the employer when having a legal dispute. This Q&A two pager gives an overview of labor court proceedings in Germany.

1. Which courts are responsible for labor disputes and what are the stages of appeal? There is a separate and exclusive jurisdiction for labor law matters, which is part of the civil jurisdiction. The first instance of labor law jurisdiction is the local labor court (Arbeitsgericht), the next highest is the Regional Labor Court (Landesarbeitsgericht) and the highest is the Federal Labor Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht).