DECISION
In the legal dispute
xxx,
Plaintiff,
Legal representative:
Attorney Sven Adam
Lange, Geismarstraße 55, 37073 Göttingen
against
Gießen District,
represented by the District Committee, Legal Department,
Riversplatz 1 – 9, 35394 Gießen,
Defendant,
The 18th Chamber of the Social Court of Gießen decided on April 12, 2023, through its presiding judge, Judge xxx of the Social Court:
The defendant must reimburse the plaintiff for the costs incurred in pursuing his legal rights appropriately.
REASONS
If, as in the present case, the plaintiff's original claim is resolved other than by judgment, the court must, upon application pursuant to Section 193 Paragraph 1 Sentence 2 of the Social Courts Act (SGG), decide on the allocation of costs. A corresponding application was submitted by the plaintiff's legal representative.
The decision on costs must be made at the court's discretion. In exercising this discretion, the court's prospects of success and the so-called causation principle are the primary considerations (HLSG, Decision of February 7, 2003, Case No.: L 12 B 93/02 RJ; Leitherer in Meyer-Ladewig, SGG Commentary, 9th edition, Munich 2008, § 193 para. 12b). Therefore, the decision on costs may not be based solely on the outcome of the legal proceedings. The court may also consider the reason for filing the application.
Since the decisive factor for the decision is the likelihood of success of the application, a division of the costs may be considered if the prospects of success are uncertain. In this case, it is up to the court to allocate the costs according to its generally equitable discretion, taking into account the prospects of success and the principle of causation.
Applying these standards, the defendant must reimburse the plaintiff for the necessary extrajudicial costs.
The decision is final in accordance with Section 172 Paragraph 3 No. 3 of the Social Court Act (SGG).
