BGH examines dispute over family archive of persecuted Jehovah's Witnesses

Acquired in good faith?

The legal dispute before the Federal Court of Justice is now primarily about the question of whether the Federal Republic "acquired the Kusserow archive in good faith". In this case, the purchaser of an object is the legal owner even if the object did not previously belong to the person from whom it was purchased. The prerequisite for this purchase "in good faith" is that the buyer did not know or could not have known that the item did not belong to the seller.

According to the German Civil Code, the item must also not have been "stolen, lost or otherwise gone missing". In this respect, the BGH should also clarify when a "lost" item is no longer considered as such. The Cologne Higher Regional Court had ruled that the Jehovah's Witnesses had tolerated the Kusserow brother as the owner of the archive and thus legitimized it. The plaintiff's side believes that subsequent legitimization is not possible. It is unclear whether the BGH will issue a ruling on Friday.

Exhibition in Jehovah's Witness museums

The documents are of "immense value" to the Jehovah's Witnesses, says spokesperson Stock. The religious community operates around a dozen museums worldwide in which the archive could be exhibited if it were granted. For example, a museum was opened in Selters in the Hessian Taunus region in 2025. A large-scale exhibition on the history of Jehovah's Witnesses in Central Europe is in preparation.

During the Nazi era, Jehovah's Witnesses refused to give the Hitler salute or send their children to the Hitler Youth. Many refused to do military service. From 1933, they were persecuted by the Nazis. Thousands were deported, imprisoned and tortured. At least 1,700 members of the community lost their lives. From the end of June, a new memorial in Berlin will commemorate the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses.

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