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Investors in two separate suits claimed that Porsche SE, which
controls 52.2 percent of VW's voting rights, had not disclosed
the financial risks of VW's emissions scandal quickly enough
when it emerged in 2015.
Their lawyers demanded that Bosch provide e-mails concerning its
business with VW.
Bosch, which makes an engine control unit used by several top
automakers including VW, had protested, saying it had the right
to refuse to provide evidence.
The Stuttgart court ruled that Bosch had no such right in this
case.
It said the e-mails showed Bosch acted in accordance with the
law, which meant it could not argue that it risked incriminating
itself by handing them over.
Providing the e-mails would also not risk causing direct
financial damage to the company or to anyone to whom it is
accountable, it said.
Nor could Bosch refuse based on its right to protect trade
secrets, since manipulation of engine control software is
illegal and therefore not protected by law.
Bosch said it would await the court's full written opinion and
then consider how to respond.
"The company reserves the right to file a legal challenge to
protect the interests of Bosch," it said in a statement.
Preference shares in Porsche SE fell by more than 40 percent in
the two weeks after the VW emissions scandal broke.
They remain nearly 10 percent below their value prior to the
news that VW had cheated on emissions tests.
(Reporting by Maria Sheahan and Ilona Wissenbach; editing by
Douglas Busvine and Jason Neely)
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