Handelsgerichts

Handelsgericht refers to a court of commerce in German-speaking territories, a term used for a court with jurisdiction over mercantile and commercial matters that was sometimes distinct from ordinary civil courts. Historically, towns and states within the Holy Roman Empire and later in German-speaking Europe established Handelsgerichte to provide specialized dispute resolution for merchants. Their remit typically covered contracts, commercial partnerships, negotiable instruments such as bills of exchange, bankruptcy and insolvency, maritime commerce, and matters affecting the commercial register. The courts were often staffed by merchant judges or lay judges with business experience, intended to deliver practical, rapid decisions suited to commercial life.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, reforms of civil procedure and administrative consolidation led to the abolition of many separate Handelsgerichte or their integration into general civil courts, sometimes as commercial chambers within larger tribunals. In modern German-speaking countries, explicit separate Handelsgerichte are rare; where they exist, they are usually within the framework of a general court system and referred to by different names. The historical concept, however, influenced the development of commercial law, including procedures relevant to merchants, negotiable instruments, and the regulation of commercial registries.