Lawyers have called on Germany’s mainstream political parties to implement a planned reform to ensure the independence and functioning of the Federal Constitutional Court despite the collapse of the governing coalition.
Eight legal associations, including the German Association of Judges, the German Bar Association and the Federal Chamber of Lawyers, published a joint statement on Friday.
In it they state that the project is “of such exceptional importance for the rule of law that all democratic parties must work to implement the reform before the planned new elections”.
They warn that it would be “irresponsible if the court in Karlsruhe failed to provide better protection against targeted interventions or blockages in the party political dispute over the economic and financial policies of the coalition government.”
The Federal Constitutional Court monitors compliance with the German Basic Law. It determines the responsibilities and limits of state action. It is of particular importance for the enforcement of basic civil rights.
The center-left SPD, the Greens, the liberal FDP and the conservative CDU/CSU all want to enshrine a number of reforms in the constitution, including a 12-year term for judges and the exclusion from re-election. age limit of 68 years for judges.
During the first discussion in the Bundestag in October, only the far-right AfD spoke out against the joint plans to make the Federal Constitutional Court more resilient.
An expert hearing on the planned reform is scheduled for next Wednesday in the Legal Affairs Committee of the Bundestag. After that, the lower house of the Bundestag could theoretically hold a final debate and vote on it.
