Hamburg, Germany — May 8, 2026
The Hamburg Regional Court ruled Friday that Der Spiegel's reporting on allegations made by presenter Collien Fernandes against her ex-partner, actor Christian Ulmen, largely complied with legal standards for suspicion-based journalism.
Court's Decision
The court found that Der Spiegel "beachtet die Voraussetzungen einer zulässigen Verdachtsberichterstattung" ("observed the requirements for permissible suspicion-based reporting"), according to the ruling. The decision comes after Ulmen challenged the magazine's coverage of Fernandes' claims, which first brought the allegations to public attention.
While the court did not specify which parts of the reporting it deemed acceptable, it emphasized that "Es gilt weiter die Unschuldsvermutung" ("the presumption of innocence still applies"). The Spiegel had initially reported on Fernandes' accusations against her former husband, though the nature of the allegations was not detailed in the court's public statements.