Salomé Balthus wins lawsuit against Weltwoche for violation of privacy

Zürcher Rechtsanwälte AG successfully represented Salomé Balthus in a lawsuit against Weltwoche before the Zurich District Court for violation of personal rights within the meaning of Art. 28a of the Swiss Civil Code.

The background to the lawsuit was that a journalist from Weltwoche asked Salomé Balthus for an interview, but she declined. She told him that he should refrain from making such requests in future, but that he or his editorial team could book her as an escort at any time. He subsequently booked her for a dinner to get to know each other for EUR 1,000.00 in a Berlin restaurant. Following this meeting, the journalist published a first-person account of the meeting in Weltwoche, in which he printed quotes from Salomé Balthus that she allegedly made during the meeting. These were alleged snippets of conversation on topics relating to her private and intimate life.

Zürcher Rechtsanwälte AG subsequently supported Salomé Balthus in her lawsuit against Weltwoche. The Zurich District Court has now ruled that Weltwoche unlawfully violated Salomé Balthus's personality rights by publishing this article, that the journalist had not obtained Salomé Balthus's consent to do so, and that Weltwoche could not invoke any overriding interests in publishing such an article. Weltwoche must now publish the judgment in its weekly magazine. In a further step in the proceedings, Salomé Balthus' financial claims against Weltwoche (compensation and surrender of profits) will be determined. The judgment is not yet final.

The case was handled by Pablo Bünger (partner) and Margaux Beuchat (former trainee lawyer).