Recently, the law firms Sasse and Fareds stopped providing a sample cease and declaration with their warning letters for file sharing.
In my opinion, quite confusing in this regard is - especially for people whose native language is not German - that the law firm Fareds does include a Zahlungserklärung.
I usually advise my clients to sign and send a cease and desist declaration (Unterlassungserklärung) as such a Unterlassungserklärung does not include an admission of guilt or promise to pay any money. The Zahlungserklärung by Fareds is almost the contrary. While there is no word about cease and desist, it states that the signee agrees to pay a certain amount of money.
If it is signed, it can put the signee in a position, in which it will be much harder - if not impossible - to dispute later on that any money has to be paid as the Zahlungserklärung can be viewed as an acknowledgment of debt. So in my opinion, it is not advisable to sign it, especially since the settlement offer by Fareds of 735,- EUR is not exactly a bargain, but in fact it is rather questionable, whether this amount could be reached in court.
Questions? Since 2008, I have counseled and represented many clients from all over Germany, that have been fined for filesharing.
For an FAQ about Abmahnungen due to alleged file sharing, please see my article Fines for illegal file sharing in Germany - FAQ and outline.
In filesharing cases, I do not charge a fee for an initial consultation over the phone. Call me at
0631 / 84 27 759 Monday to Friday between 9 am and 5 pm for a free consultation, if you like. Or write me an e-mail to kanzlei@polishuk.de and ask for a return call at a time that suites you.
Rechtsanwalt
Dirk Polishuk
Europaallee 10
67657 Kaiserslautern
Tel: 0631 / 84 27 759
Fax: 0631 / 27 75 73 009
E-Mail: kanzlei(at)polishuk.de
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