Prof. Dr. Jan F. Orth, LL.M. English

Curriculum Vitae

Prof. Dr. Jan F. Orth, LL.M. (Texas) Presiding Judge at the Regional Court of Cologne · Honorary Professor of Sports Law, University of Cologne · Co-editor and Managing Editor of Zeitschrift für Sport und Recht (SpuRt)

Education

  • 1993 Abitur (university entrance qualification), Gymnasium der Stadt Frechen
  • 1994–1999 Law studies, University of Cologne; First State Examination in Law
  • 2000–2002 Legal traineeship (Referendariat), Regional Court district of Cologne; Second State Examination in Law
  • 2008 Doctorate in law (Dr. iur.), University of Cologne. Thesis: Vereins- und Verbandsstrafen am Beispiel des Fußballsports [Disciplinary sanctions imposed by clubs and associations, using the example of football]
  • 2011–2012 Master of Laws (LL.M.), The University of Texas School of Law, Austin

Judicial career

  • Since 2003 Judge at the Regional Court (Landgericht) of Cologne, in civil and criminal chambers
  • 2010–2013 Deputy press spokesperson of the Regional Court of Cologne
  • 2013–2016 Seconded to the Ministry of Justice of North Rhine-Westphalia as a policy officer (Referent) responsible for statistics, controlling, the judiciary's data evaluation centre, demographic change and the judicial on-call service
  • 2016 Return to the Regional Court of Cologne; appointed Presiding Judge (Vorsitzender Richter am Landgericht) in April 2016
  • 2016–2023 Presiding Judge of the 15th Grand Criminal Chamber (große Strafkammer)
  • 2017–2023 Press spokesperson for criminal matters of the Regional Court of Cologne
  • Since 2010 Examiner at the State Examination Office for Law at the Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) of Cologne
  • Since October 2025 Presiding Judge of a criminal chamber at the Regional Court of Cologne, following two years as an acting professor

Academic career

  • 1996–2003 Student and research assistant, Institute for the Law of the European Communities, University of Cologne (Prof. Dr. Jürgen F. Baur)
  • 2004–2008 Lecturer in sports law and administration, German Sport University Cologne, in the course for professional football coaches at the Hennes Weisweiler Academy
  • 2008–2009 Lecturer in sports law, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
  • 2009–2017 Lecturer in sports law, University of Cologne, Institute of International and Foreign Public Law (Prof. Dr. Bernhard Kempen)
  • Since 2015 Lecturer in the LL.M. programme in Sports Law, University of Bayreuth
  • Since 2016 Lecturer in sports law at the German Judicial Academy (Deutsche Richterakademie)
  • Since December 2017 Honorary Professor (Honorarprofessor), Faculty of Law, University of Cologne
  • Since June 2018 Managing Director of the Sports Law Research Centre (Forschungsstelle Sportrecht), University of Cologne
  • 2023–2025 Acting Professor (Vertretungsprofessor) of Criminal Law and Sports Law, University of Cologne, Institute of Foreign and International Criminal Law (Prof. Dr. Bettina Weißer)

Editorial work

  • Since August 2017 Co-editor and Managing Editor (Schriftleiter) of Zeitschrift für Sport und Recht (SpuRt), C.H. Beck, Munich
  • Cherkeh/Momsen/Orth (eds.), Sportstrafrecht [Sports Criminal Law], C.H. Beck, Munich 2021
  • Jakob/Orth/Stopper (eds.), Praxishandbuch Vereins- und Verbandsrecht (mit Schwerpunkt Sport) [Handbook of the Law of Clubs and Associations, with a focus on sport], C.H. Beck, Munich 2021
  • Fischinger/Orth, COVID-19 und Sport – Verträge und Regelwerke krisenfest gestalten [COVID-19 and Sport – Crisis-proof contracts and regulations], C.H. Beck, Munich 2021
  • Orth (ed.), Datenschutz und Persönlichkeitsrechte im Sport [Data protection and personality rights in sport], proceedings of the 2023 annual conference of the German Association for Sports Law, Recht und Sport vol. 52, Boorberg, Stuttgart 2024

Sports jurisdiction, arbitration and compliance

  • Since September 2026 External Compliance Officer and Compliance Ombudsperson of 1. FC Köln e.V. and 1. FC Köln GmbH & Co. KGaA
  • Since 2010 Associate judge (Beisitzer) of the Federal Court (Bundesgericht) of the German Football Association (DFB)
  • Since 2025 Member of the Trust Committee (Vertrauensgremium) for the clubs of the Handball-Bundesliga under § 25 of the statutes of Handball-Bundesliga e.V.
  • Since 2015 Associate member of the arbitral tribunal of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL)
  • Since 2016 Arbitrator at the German Court of Arbitration for Sport (DIS), including the special list for anti-doping disputes
  • Since 2016 Arbitrator in commercial arbitration under §§ 1025 et seq. of the German Code of Civil Procedure
  • Since 2019 Member of the Disciplinary Board of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF)

Other

  • From 2018 Developer of the iOS app Richtertools, a tool for judges (discontinued)

Selected publications

A complete list of publications is available in German on the Vita page.

In English

  • "Striking down the 'Osaka Rule' – An unnecessary departure", International Sports Law Journal 2012, 28 (full text)
  • "Explaining the Cologne Circumcision Decision", The Journal of Criminal Law 77 (2013) 497 (full text)

Monograph

  • Vereins- und Verbandsstrafen am Beispiel des Fußballsports [Disciplinary sanctions imposed by clubs and associations, using the example of football], doctoral thesis, Frankfurt am Main 2009

Book chapters

  • "Die Auswirkungen der Diarra-Entscheidung des EuGH" [The consequences of the CJEU's Diarra judgment], in Grundei (ed.), Berufssportrecht X – Aktuelle Rechtsfragen des Berufssports, Jan Sramek Verlag, Vienna 2026
  • "§ 17 Apps zur Unterstützung gerichtlicher Tätigkeit" [Apps supporting judicial work], with H.-J. Pabst, in Riehm/Dörr (eds.), Digitalisierung und Zivilverfahren, De Gruyter, Berlin/Boston 2023, p. 349
  • "Sport und Korruption" [Sport and corruption], in Busch/Hoven/Pieth/Rübenstahl (eds.), Antikorruptions-Compliance, C.F. Müller, 2020
  • "§ 10 Sport", in Schmidt (ed.), COVID-19 – Rechtsfragen zur Corona-Krise, C.H. Beck, 1st–3rd ed. 2020–2021
  • "Rechtsfragen des Dopings im Sport" [Legal issues of doping in sport], in Prütting (ed.), Festschrift 100 Jahre Rechtswissenschaftliche Fakultät der Universität zu Köln, Otto Schmidt, 2020
  • "Die zivilrechtliche Haftung des Schiedsrichters" [The civil liability of the referee], in Württembergischer Fußballverband (ed.), Integrität und Compliance im Sport, Nomos, p. 161

Articles and case notes (selection, in German)

  • "Der 'Fall Markus Anfang'" [The Markus Anfang case – criminal, disciplinary and employment law consequences of a forged COVID-19 vaccination certificate in sport], with P. S. Fischinger and M. Kubiciel, SpuRt 2022, 70
  • "Präventive Sanktionen als zivilrechtliche Strafen?" [Preventive sanctions as civil-law penalties?], NJW 2022, 220
  • "Die Fußballwelt nach Wilhelmshaven" [The football world after Wilhelmshaven], SpuRt 2017, 9
  • "Zur Zukunft der internationalen Schiedsgerichtsbarkeit im Sport – auch in Deutschland" [On the future of international sports arbitration – in Germany too], SpuRt 2015, 230
  • "Entscheidungsvollzug in der Verbandspyramide und Ausbildungsentschädigung" [Enforcement of decisions within the association pyramid and training compensation], with M. Stopper, SpuRt 2015, 51
  • "Sportrecht ist Wirtschaftsrecht" [Sports law is business law], Kölner Schrift zum Wirtschaftsrecht 2013, 211
  • "Die Rechtslage beim bundesweiten Stadionverbot" [The legal position on nationwide stadium bans], with B. Schiffbauer, Rechtswissenschaft 2011, 177

Selected lectures in English

  • "The Circumcision Decision of the Cologne Regional Court", public lecture, Durham Law School, University of Durham, 22 January 2013
  • Keynote, "The Wilhelmshaven case: Challenging FIFA and the CAS", T.M.C. Asser Institute, The Hague, 28 October 2016
  • "Legal education in Germany" and "Professional standards of a German judge with focus on his independence", international training programme for English-speaking judges, German Foundation for International Legal Cooperation (IRZ), Bonn, 9 November 2016
  • Expert and juror at criminal law moot courts and judicial training programmes of the IRZ in Hanoi (2013, 2014, 2016), Yerevan (2016) and Chişinău (2017)

Memberships

  • German Association for Sports Law (Deutsche Vereinigung für Sportrecht, DVSR): member of the Advisory Board since 2019 and Managing Member of the Executive Board (Geschäftsführender Vorstand) since 2022
  • Association for the Promotion of Sports Law at the University of Cologne: Chair
  • Cologne Law Society (Kölner Juristische Gesellschaft)
  • Texas Exes and The University of Texas Law Alumni Association (European Chapter)
  • Founding donor (Stifter) of the COME OUT! Foundation