Judgment of the Federal Court on Violation of the Federal Act against Unfair Competition

Facts

The appellant [X.] published a critical article in the Neue Zürcher Zeitung about a boxing event organized by the respondent [Y.] with his company [A. GmbH] . Thereupon, [Y.] filed a criminal complaint for defamation, libel, and unfair competition. The District Court of Zofingen convicted [X.] on all three counts, but the High Court of the Canton of Aargau acquitted him of the charges of libel and defamation and convicted him only of a violation of the Federal Act against Unfair Competition.

[X.] then filed a federal nullity appeal against the judgment of the High Court. The Federal Court overturned the conviction for unfair competition and remanded the case to the lower court for a new assessment.

Considerations

The Federal Court concluded that the lower court had wrongly classified the appellant's statements as unnecessarily injurious or misleading. The description of the boxing event as a "fairground event" and the statements that it was a "fraud on the public" and "completely worthless from a sporting perspective" were not to be considered punishable given the circumstances. The information about a possible brain…