Cite the named commentary, “What does Zöller say on §91a ZPO?”, “Per Erman, when does §305c BGB trigger?”, and Libra goes straight to the paragraph.
What Otto Schmidt brings
This is a depth source: named commentaries a German lawyer can cite by author. The titles practitioners reach for most:
Plus practice handbooks on Arbeitsrecht, Mietrecht, WEG, Familien-, Erb- und Testamentrecht.
Otto Schmidt sells this content as modules, and what you can actually search in Libra is the set of modules your firm holds — Zöller, for instance, is its own module rather than part of the civil-law bundle. The next section lists the ones Libra sells directly.
The five modules Libra sells
German teams can buy these five packages inside Libra, without a separate contract with the publisher:
Licenses are per person, and every package is sold in a minimum of three — the app states it above the package cards: Smallest package includes 3 licenses. Whichever content module you hold, Otto Schmidt’s Basis Modules, Gesetze and Rechtsprechung, come with it at no extra cost.
Modules beyond those five
The publisher’s catalogue runs to roughly 180 modules — the STAUDINGER Beratermodule, Beratermodul Medienrecht, the journal modules, and much more. Libra doesn’t sell those, but it can search them if your firm is entitled to them: connect your own Otto Schmidt account and Libra picks up whatever that account is subscribed to. Until you do, they appear in the Select modules panel under Additional Modules, greyed out, with the note “Additional modules are available with your own Otto Schmidt account.”Some firms agree a module set directly with Otto Schmidt rather than buying packages in Libra. Those modules are configured for the whole team and show up under Provided by Libra with nothing to assign person by person.
Signature journals
Otto Schmidt publishes the journals German civil and tax practice runs on: MDR (Monatsschrift für Deutsches Recht, published since 1947), GmbHR (GmbH-Rundschau), AG (Die Aktiengesellschaft) and FR (Finanz-Rundschau). Naming one in a question is a good way to steer Libra towards recent scholarship. Each has its own Beratermodul in the publisher’s catalogue — Beratermodul GmbHR – GmbH-Rundschau, Beratermodul AG Die Aktiengesellschaft, Beratermodul FinanzRundschau — so whether Libra can quote a given journal depends on the modules your firm holds, not on the Otto Schmidt connection alone.What you can ask
- “Was sagt Zöller zu § 91a ZPO (Erledigung der Hauptsache)?”
- “Erman BGB zu § 305c: wann ist eine Klausel überraschend?”
- “Wie wird der Streitwert bei einer Räumungsklage berechnet (Schneider/Kurpat)?”
- “Aktuelle MDR-Aufsätze zur Verwirkung von Unterhaltsansprüchen?”
During the free trial
All five packages are included in the free trial, so you can search the whole Libra-sold catalogue before your firm commits to anything. Two things behave differently from a paid plan:- You switch the source on once. In the Research picker, Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt offers Activate in free trial in place of the usual switch. After that it toggles like any other source.
- Trial research is capped. Each person gets three Otto Schmidt requests a day, resetting at midnight UTC. Hovering the source row shows Resource usage against the limit and the words Resets daily, with the reminder that “Otto Schmidt is available on a limited trial basis with daily usage that resets.” When you reach the cap Libra quietly drops Otto Schmidt from your selected sources for the rest of the day; every other source keeps working.
Setup
1
Open Settings → Integrations
Click your profile icon at the bottom of the sidebar, choose Settings, then Integrations. Otto Schmidt — Legal research database — sits at the top of the connector list.
2
Pick an authentication method
Libra Access signs you in to Otto Schmidt with your Libra account and gives you the modules your firm’s licenses cover; the option lists them under Available modules. Use my Otto Schmidt Account connects your personal Otto Schmidt login instead, which is how you reach modules Libra doesn’t sell.If you later switch between the two, clear your browser cookies for
online.otto-schmidt.de — the app reminds you, and skipping it leaves you signed in as the wrong identity.3
Choose your modules in Research
In a chat, open Research. The Verlag Dr. Otto Schmidt row carries a Select modules control, because access is licensed module by module. Modules you hold sit under Provided by Libra; anything your team hasn’t licensed is marked Missing license. Pick two to four — a tighter selection gives a more focused answer, which is what the panel’s own hint tells you.
Buying and handing out licenses
Otto Schmidt is one of the publishers you can buy from without leaving Libra. An Owner or Admin opens Team & Subscription from the profile menu and works through two tabs:- On Subscription, the Otto Schmidt Licenses section lists the five packages as cards. Tick the ones you want, set the count with the stepper — three is the floor per package — and they join the same order as your Libra licenses. Firms on a manually created subscription see Request changes instead of a checkout.
- On Team Members, the Otto Schmidt Licenses card shows where each package stands, either N available or Not purchased, with Buy licenses next to it. Licenses bought here still have to be assigned: tick the people, then Assign packages.
Tips
Cite the named commentary when you know it
Cite the named commentary when you know it
“What does Zöller say about…” / “Per Erman, the requirement is…”: Libra tracks named-commentary references and pulls the matching passage.
Combine with WK Online for breadth
Combine with WK Online for breadth
Otto Schmidt is the depth layer. Wolters Kluwer Online adds breadth across modules and the cross-discipline case-law collection.
Narrow the modules before a hard question
Narrow the modules before a hard question
Leaving every licensed module switched on spreads the search thin. For a Streitwert question, Zöller and Aktionsmodul Zivilrecht are enough; drop the tax and corporate modules and the answer comes back tighter.
Use MDR / GmbHR / AG / FR for current scholarship
Use MDR / GmbHR / AG / FR for current scholarship
For recent scholarly takes, naming the journal speeds up the answer: “Find a recent MDR article on…” — as long as your firm’s modules cover it.
Next steps
Wolters Kluwer Online
Pair Otto Schmidt depth with WK Online breadth.
Research mode
Use Otto Schmidt in any chat.