Facts
The Association against Animal Factories Switzerland (VgT) sued the 20 Minuten AG and demanded that the newspaper publish a rejoinder and deliver a specimen copy of the rejoinder to the VgT. The District Court of Münchwilen obliged the 20 Minuten AG to publish the rejoinder, but rejected the claim for delivery of a specimen copy. Both the VgT and the 20 Minuten AG appealed, whereupon the High Court of the Canton of Thurgau confirmed the judgment.
The VgT then filed a civil law complaint with the Federal Supreme Court and demanded the annulment of the judgment and the referral of the case back to the lower instance. Alternatively, the 20 Minuten AG should be obliged to deliver a specimen copy of the rejoinder to the VgT.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court dismissed the complaint, insofar as it was entered. It stated that the provisions on the right of rejoinder are regulated in detail, but that there is no express entitlement to the delivery of a specimen copy. The legislator has not overlooked this issue, but has decided tacitly that such a claim does not exist.
The purpose of the rejoinder, to provide the affected party with equal opportunities, is achieved if the rejoinder is published and thus made accessible to the same audience as the original article. The delivery of a specimen copy merely serves the satisfaction of the affected party, but does not constitute a legal claim.
The provisions on the pre-trial procedure also do not result in a claim to a…