Sachverhalts

Sachverhalt is a German legal term that refers to the objective factual conditions underlying a case. It describes the concrete state of affairs, the events and circumstances that are relevant for a legal question, independently of how the law applies to them. The concept helps separate factual background from legal analysis or normative conclusions.

In legal writing, the term is used to frame the context of a dispute, a contract, or a judgment. Courts and lawyers often present a section called the Sachverhalt (or a similarly titled summary) that outlines who did what, when and where, what evidence exists, and which circumstances are material to the case. The aim is to provide a clear, neutral, and verifiable account that supports subsequent legal assessment.

The Sachverhalt serves as the factual basis for further evaluation, such as the examination of the Tatbestand (the statutory elements) and the Rechtsfolge (the legal consequence). Presentations of the Sachverhalt should be concise, chronological, and free from value judgments, leaving interpretation to the legal analysis rather than to the facts as stated.

Grammatically, Sachverhalt is masculine: der Sachverhalt; the plural is die Sachverhalte. The genitive singular is des Sachverhalts, a form in which the stem ends with s. The form Sachverhalts is therefore the genitive singular ending used in that construction; the normal plural form is Sachverhalte.

Example: Im Sachverhalt schildert das Gericht, dass am 3. März 2023 der Angeklagte eine Sache in der Innenstadt entnahm.