If you missed our last post on the subject, H&K are being sued by German Sports Guns and American Tactical Imports. GSG and ATI claim H&K did not own the rights to the MP5 design patent (that is the look of the gun, not the operation/internals) when H&K sued them for infringing on it with the GSG-22.  They are suing H&K for the same amount that H&K sued them back in 2009, a cool $16.5 million.

German Sports Guns told TFB that they will prove in court that H&K does not have any rights to the design of the the MP5 and the G3. Until the court case we can only speculate as to why GSG does not believe this to be true.

One of our readers, Icchan, wrote in the comments that maybe GSG’s reasoning is related to the CETME Rifle, designed by the Spanish government organization CETME in the early 1950s. The CETME itself was based on the Germany StG 45(M). The H&K G3 was in turn based on the CETME and the H&K MP5 was visually inspired by the G3/CETME look, as well as using an action based on the same roller delayed blowback technology. Take a look at the design evolution below …

StG 45(M), designed in 1945

CETME Rifle, designed during 1950

H&K G3 designed in the late 1950s

H&K MP5, designed in the early 1960s

I am not a lawyer and have no idea which organization owns the rights to this design. The court case will decide this.

This is what the German press are saying about the lawsuit (translated from German, so ignore any grammar mistakes) …

GSG now told that Heckler & Koch is being sued along with the U.S. importer for infringement of design rights and fraud to $ 16.5 million. GSG CEO Michael Swoboda admits that it is basically a counterclaim, because H & K demanded just as much millions since 2011.
…

GSG-Chief Swoboda says openly that the pressure on H & K is being increased to achieve readiness to talk.

In other words, GSG want to settle as soon as possible. The primary problem for H&K is that they would lose rights to the MP5 design if they lose the lawsuit, which would end royalty payments from all licensees of the design as well as open the floodgates to clones.