Samsung Electronics v ZTE Deutschland (CFI, 28 May 2025)

Dhenne Avocats · 10 October 2026

Our analysis

Summary

By order of 28 May 2025, the judge rapporteur of the Mannheim Local Division provisionally set the value of Samsung Electronics’ infringement action on EP 4 050 804 against three ZTE companies (UPC_CFI_189/2025) at EUR 4,000,000 and ordered Samsung to pay an additional advance on fees of EUR 26,000. Samsung had paid a fixed fee of EUR 11,000 based on a value of EUR 500,000.

Question

Did the value in dispute stated by the claimant reflect what was at stake in an action against all of the defendants’ 5G devices, against the background of FRAND negotiations?

Decision

No. The action targets all of the defendants’ 5G mobile devices operating under the standard, and the parties are also discussing an overall FRAND rate, on which the injunction sought will have an economic bearing. Given that commercial background, the judge rapporteur found the value « largely underestimated » and raised it to EUR 4,000,000 on a provisional basis. The fee for that value being EUR 37,000, the claimant owes a further EUR 26,000.

Key points for practice

• In an action based on a standard essential patent, the value in dispute reflects the economic weight of the injunction in the FRAND negotiation, not merely the figure stated by the claimant.
• The division may reassess the value of its own motion at the outset of the proceedings and call for additional fees.

Provisions applied

Rules of Procedure

No provision cited in the order.

Prepared by Dhenne Avocats from the official decision, consulted on 10 October 2026. The database is updated every week, on Friday. Only the official text is authoritative.