Among the most influential constitutional courts in the world. Any person may bring a Verfassungsbeschwerde after exhausting ordinary remedies, and the Court may annul federal or state legislation outright.
How the court is constituted
- Tier
- constitutional
- Court type
- Constitutional court
- Jurisdiction
- National constitutional review
- Seat
- Karlsruhe
- Established
- 1951
- Composition
- Two senates of eight justices each
- Appointment
- Half elected by the Bundestag, half by the Bundesrat, each by a two-thirds majority; single twelve-year term
- Caseload
- ~5,000 constitutional complaints per year
- Languages
- German
Where an appeal goes next
Final domestically; ECHR application possible thereafter
Filing at this court
- Route in
- Constitutional complaint within one month of the final decision
- Cost
- No court fee; abuse fees possible
- Representation
- Not mandatory in writing; required at oral hearing
Decisions worth knowing
- Lüth1958
Basic rights radiate into private law interpretation.
- Climate Protection Order2021
Insufficient emissions planning burdened future freedom.
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