In the Ischgl case, the corona lawsuits against Tyrol and the federal government are withdrawn

The lawsuits concerned possible official failures in the spread of the corona pandemic. As of June 1, 2023, the OGH has made a landmark decision on the long-term case. The Supreme Court has rejected official liability claims by a German tourist against the republic. It had apparently become infected with the corona virus in March 2020 during a stay in the Tyrolean winter sports resort.

Opinion of the lower courts upheld
The Supreme Court upheld the view of the lower courts that the duties assigned to the authority in the Epidemic Act should be “solely aimed at protecting the general public”. And apparently not the protection of individuals. The Supreme Court also saw no basis for possible liability in ‘incorrect information’ from the state of Tyrol dated 5 March 2020 about a sick passenger en route from Munich to Iceland. The information was “kept in the subjunctive” and “vaguely worded”. The Supreme Court has upheld the appeals of the Finanzprokuratur against the annulment of the court of appeal, the Vienna Higher Regional Court (OLG).

The proceedings before the Vienna Regional Court are still pending
However, the cause has not yet been legally resolved nationally. Proceedings against the federal government are still ongoing at the Vienna Regional Court for Civil Law Matters, and judgments are still pending in individual cases, said Peter Kolba, president of the Consumer Protection Association (VSV) on the APA. There are now 50 final OGH decisions. The plaintiffs would have the option of filing a state liability claim within three years.

According to SAAM legal advice, the Supreme Court should have referred the case to the European Court of Justice (CJEU) because of the question of the applicability of the Charter of Fundamental Rights. The SAAM is now investigating whether the legal protection insurance could finance a model lawsuit against state liability. According to Kolba, such a proposal should be submitted to the Constitutional Court (VfGH).

Causa Ischgl without criminal consequences
It has been clear for some time now that the Ischgl case will not have any criminal consequences. Five people had once seen themselves exposed to criminal investigations into the case. According to reports, these were the director of the Tyrolean state office Herbert Forster, the former district governor of Landeck Markus Maass, the mayor of Ischgl Werner Kurz and two employees of the district administration.

In the end, however, no charges were filed. There is no evidence “that anyone culpably did or failed to do anything that would have increased the risk of infection,” the reasoning goes. As a result, the Consumer Protection Association (VSV) announced that it would submit a follow-up application, which ultimately failed.

Tyrolean winter sports resort long under the sign of Corona
At the start of the pandemic in March 2020, there was a major outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in the Tyrolean winter sports resort of Ischgl. About 11,000 infections were traced to the ski resort, which was temporarily quarantined along with the surrounding area. The infections would have mainly taken place in après ski bars.

The authorities were accused of reacting too late and not comprehensively enough. The VSV had accused the local authorities in Tyrol and the responsible politicians at the federal level of serious mistakes in the management of the pandemic in the ski resorts in February and March 2020.