Berlin in favour of initiative to strengthen the Constitutional Court

Berlin supports a cross-state initiative by the Bundesrat aimed at better protecting the independence of the Federal Constitutional Court.

The Senate has passed a resolution to this effect following a proposal by Senator of Justice Felor Badenberg (CDU), according to the Senate Chancellery. Berlin intends to submit the necessary resolution for the initiative to the Bundesrat.

Ensure the independence of constitutional jurisdiction

The Federal Constitutional Court is an indispensable guarantor of the free and democratic basic order, said Badenberg. ‘We must therefore safeguard the Federal Constitutional Court through the Basic Law. This is the only way to ensure the independence of the constitutional jurisdiction in the future.’ Central points such as the term of office of judges, their age limit or the number of senates have so far only been regulated by law in the Federal Constitutional Court Act. Now they are to be incorporated into the Basic Law.

Federal Council approval required for changes

These proposals by the Federal Ministry of Justice in coordination with the parliamentary groups of the SPD, CDU/CSU, Bündnis90/Die Grünen and FDP were welcomed by the participating federal states. ‘In their view, however, it should be added that the Federal Constitutional Court Act may not be amended without the consent of the Bundesrat,’ the Senate Chancellery's statement reads. ‘This would further strengthen the independence and, above all, the functioning of the Constitutional Court.’