A German court have ruled in favour of mens' right to urinate while standing - a subject of heated debate across the country

A German court today ruled men do have the right to urinate standing up - but they must expect it can cause the occasional row with female housemates.

The finding was made after a landlord claimed their tenant ruined their marble floor by sprinkling it with urine.

Attempting to retain part of the tenant's €3,000 (£2,300) deposit, the landlord argued their bathroom floor was eaten away by uric acid.

Although the judge knocked back the tenant's claim, he noted men who stand to urinate can expect the occasional row with their housemates.

The debate about whether men should stand or sit is no laughing matter in Germany.

Some toilets in the country have red traffic-style signs forbidding the standing position.

There is also a derogatory term for men who sit and pee - 'Sitzpinkler' - which implies that it is not masculine behaviour.

Judge Stefan Hank in the city of Duesseldorf said men who insist on standing 'must expect occasional rows with housemates, especially women'.

But he added that they cannot be held to account for collateral damage.

'Despite growing domestication of men in this matter, urinating while standing up is still widespread,' he said.

While accepting that the marble floor had eaten away by uric acid the tenant had sprinkled on the ground, he said the owner should have told the tenant the floor was vulnerable, The Times of India reported.

'Someone who still practises this previously dominant custom is regularly confronted with significant disputes, particularly with female cohabitants.