The Kehler restaurateur Mirko Sansa had submitted an urgent application to the Mannheim Administrative Court: He sued for the immediate opening of his restaurant “Hafen 17” – in compliance with the relevant hygiene requirements. Now his application has been rejected.
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“I am disappointed”, with these clear words Mirko Sansa, operator of “Hafen 17” in the Kehler Hafen, reacted to the decision of the Administrative Court in Mannheim with which his application for the reopening of the catering trade was rejected. The Kehler restaurateur announced this in a press release.
“In view of the difficult situation in which I find myself and in which the catering industry as a whole is, I would have preferred a different decision,” the press release says.
Represented by the Offenburg lawyer Dieter Eckert, Sansa had submitted an application on March 9 to suspend the closure of the gastronomy ordered in the current Corona ordinance.
The main reasons for the rejection of this application are that, in view of the ongoing threat posed by the pandemic, legislators and regulators have leeway in choosing among the available measures.
Of course, the principle of equality should be observed, but this is still observed in the present case, especially in comparison to supermarkets, which are used for health care.
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“Unfortunately, the court does not make a statement on the question of comparability with bookstores, flower shops, and gardening stores,” said Dieter Eckert in the message from the Kehler restaurateur, “although a more in-depth examination would have been obvious here.”
The court also found that the legislature and ordinance giver could keep the gastronomy closed regardless of the hygiene concepts practiced there and the demonstrably low proportion of infection and instead gradually open other facilities. “I don’t understand,” Sansa continues. “Our costly efforts to adhere to the hygiene rules are in no way appreciated.
In conclusion, lawyer Eckert refers to another aspect: “With reference to decisions by other courts, we stated that the duration of the business closure is now close to an operational ban that can no longer be justified from the point of view of proportionality.
Unfortunately, the Administrative Court does not make a specific statement on this, but refers to state aid across the board. The problems with applying for and paying out this aid are well known.
Despite his disappointment, Mirko Sansa does not want to give up: “I am a restaurateur, I want to be there for my guests and pamper them, especially in these difficult times of the pandemic.”
He will therefore carefully monitor current developments with his lawyer and, if necessary, take them to court again.
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