Federal Court Dispute over night-time cowbell ringing brings legal action
The night-time ringing of bells by cows on a nearby farm will continue to accompany two landowners in the canton of Fribourg during their legal proceedings for the time being. The Federal Supreme Court has rejected their application for precautionary measures.
05.12.2024, 12:00
SDA
The two owners brought an action before the civil court to have the bells removed from the animals on the pastures adjacent to their property during the night from 10.00 pm to 7.00 am. They kept a noise diary and took noise measurements themselves.
The civil court partially approved their requests, but the Fribourg cantonal court overturned this decision. It referred the case back to the civil court so that a noise report could be drawn up. It refused to issue precautionary measures. This is the result of a ruling by the Federal Supreme Court published on Thursday.
Correct preliminary decision
The opponents of the cowbells tried to have the precautionary measures ordered by the cantonal authorities during the ongoing proceedings before Switzerland's highest court. Specifically, they wanted the bells to be removed from the animals at night.
However, this has come to nothing. The Federal Supreme Court confirmed that the cantonal court had not violated the appellants' right to be heard and had correctly assessed the "private noise report" they had drawn up. There was therefore nothing to criticize about the rejection of precautionary measures.
For this decision, the two landowners represented by a lawyer must pay court costs of CHF 4,000 to the Federal Supreme Court. (Judgement 5A_342/2024 of 13.11.2024)
