Abreu advises Pestana Group on defense against RTL
Abreu Advogados has advised the Pestana Group on the defense against a law suit from the
German television channel RTL Television.
The Abreu team, coordinated by Henrique Trocado, of counsel, and Teresa Brito da Silva, partner, acted on behalf of Pestana Group in the response to the accusation by the German television channel, in two of the Group’s hotels, for broadcasting, during almost one year, the channel in question without prior authorisation.
The decision pronounced by the Supreme Court of Justice confirms the decision of the European Union Court of Justice (ECJ), dismissing the appeal filed by the German TV channel and upholding the previous decision pronounced by the Court of First Instance and confirmed by the Lisbon Court of Appeal, which dismissed all the claims.
The outcome now confirmed acquires greater relevance for the hotel sector since another court decision could set a precedent for other actions by this and other broadcasters against Portuguese hotel groups, based on the same claim of authorising the distribution by cable, in the several hotel rooms, only after getting a remuneration for this authorisation.
