03 November 2020
Rule of Judges, Rule over Judges, Rule by Judges
There are numerous reasons why people feel anxious about the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Donald Trump seems more than willing to use the tools at hand to manipulate the democratic game to his own advantage and to use the law and courts to impact the election, to manipulate the democratic game, and to extend Trump’s political power beyond the 2020 presidential election. Judicial intervention has, however, a self-defeating potential in terms of legitimacy. Outlined here is the clash between democracy and juristocracy, and the potential it holds for a latent autocracy. Continue reading >>
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Populist but not Popular
After the judgment of the PiS-controlled Constitutional Tribunal, the sharp drop in support for PiS in the latest polls makes the ruling camp try panically to minimize the political losses it has suffered. One symptom of that panic is the fact that the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal has not yet been published. Another is draft law submitted by the PiS-aligned President Duda slightly alleviating the effects of the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal. All this proves how deep the crisis of the rule of law and how blurred the border between law and politics in Poland have become. Continue reading >>Stabilizing the US Judiciary by Threatening to Pack It
Reforming the judicial appointment process in the US will take a constitutional amendment. Without it, reform attempts are likely to fail. For conservatives especially, altering the courts now, after securing a very conservative majority unprecedented in recent history, will seem unappealing. They may (perhaps correctly) conclude that, given their systematic advantages in the Senate and therefore electoral college, endless escalation is a game they may be able to win. This blog post proposes a simple mechanism that aims to force a stabilizing constitutional amendment forward while preserving the option to escalate if they cannot secure cooperation from the Republican party. Continue reading >>
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Confronting Misinformation During A Pandemic
A new report by The Freedom House tracks recent developments in internet-freedom and presents the “Pandemic’s Digital Shadow” on democratic values around the world. The report explains how governments worldwide used the covid-19 pandemic to limit access to information, expand their surveillance efforts, and intensify the balkanization of the internet. It raises the question what democracies should, and should not, do to confront the perils of misinformation. Continue reading >>Pitfalls of a Precious Opportunity
After forty years, Chile recently expressed the will to no longer being governed by the Constitution bequeathed by Pinochet. And it did so in a resounding manner through a plebiscite. The path that will lead to the election of the Constitutional Convention and then the drafting of the new Constitution seems to be exciting: we are observing how a genuine constituent moment is unfolding. However, the importance of the social question coupled with the new constitution carries the risk of over-constitutionalisation and the lack of leadership in the constitutional process could diminish its perception of legitimacy. Continue reading >>
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02 November 2020
Lenin and Wilson in Tension
The autumn of 2020 witnessed the biggest escalation of the decades-long Nagorno-Karabakh conflict since the war of 1992-4. The analysis of legal arguments raised by the Armenian and Azerbaijan sides, is influenced by the Crimean Referendum of 2014. Whereas in the latter case, the majority of the UN members condemned Russian acts, now the international community seems reluctant to take a stance, calling for a mutual ceasefire instead. Does the difference in international response display inconsistency of state practice and the prevalence of Realpolitik over the rule of international law? This contribution suggests that the incongruity is due to two different doctrines informing the scope of a right to self-determination. Continue reading >>
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Urheberrechtsreform und Upload-Filter: Eine Gefahr für die Meinungspluralität?
Es war eines der Aufregerthemen des letzten Jahres: Im April 2019 verabschiedete die EU nach langen Verhandlungen die Urheberrechtsrichtlinie. Art. 17 der Richtlinie schreibt kommerziellen Hosting Providern unter anderem vor, für die von Nutzern hochgeladenen urheberrechtlich geschützten Inhalten Lizenzen von Rechteinhabern zu erwerben. Scheitert der Lizenzerwerb jedoch, so kann der Hosting Provider die Haftung für einen von seinen Nutzern begangenen Urheberrechtsverstoß jedoch dadurch ausschließen, dass er unter Mithilfe der Rechteinhaber „nach Maßgabe hoher branchenüblicher Standards“ – sprich durch den Einsatz von Filtern – die Nicht-Verfügbarkeit geschützter Inhalte sicherstellt. Continue reading >>Zwei Seiten einer Medaille
Eine erfolgreiche EU-Asylreform verlangt nicht nur, dass die Mitgliedstaaten und das Europäische Parlament sich einigen. Darüber hinaus müssen die Regeln so ausgestaltet sein, dass sie in der Praxis halbwegs funktionieren. Dies kann nur dann gelingen, wenn alle Mitgliedstaaten das Reformpaket als fair empfinden und Anreizstrukturen bestehen, damit sich Migranten und Flüchtlinge regelkonform verhalten. In der Gegenwart ist das nicht der Fall. Die EU-Asylpolitik leidet unter einem ausgeprägten Vollzugsdefizit, das sich exemplarisch bei einem Phänomen zeigt, das gerade aus deutscher Perspektive wichtig ist: die Sekundärmigration. Continue reading >>01 November 2020
The U.S. Supreme Court and the 2020 Election
As Election Day looms, Americans are heading to the polls, and they are also heading to the courts. In the past two weeks, the U.S. Supreme Court has issued rulings in five challenges to election-related practices in different states, and there are surely more to come. The litigation has exposed disagreements on the high court, and on lower courts as well, about where responsibility lies for ensuring elections play out fairly and in accordance with law. Of all of the opinions flying around, the one to get the most attention is perhaps a concurrence from Justice Kavanaugh that invokes Bush v. Gore, in which the Court stopped a recount in Florida and thereby decided the outcome of the 2000 presidential election. Continue reading >>
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31 October 2020
Rechtsstaatliche Immunabwehr
Am Montag beginnt mit dem „Wellenbrecher-Lockdown“ nicht nur eine neue und einschneidende Phase der Pandemiebekämpfung, es mehren sich seither auch gegenüber den Bekämpfungsmaßnahmen kritische Stimmen. In der politischen wie juristischen Debatte finden sich im Wesentlichen drei Kritikpunkte: die vermutete Unverhältnismäßigkeit der Maßnahmen, die mangelnde Bestimmtheit der Ermächtigungsgrundlagen und die ausbleibende Beteiligung der Parlamente in der Pandemiebekämpfung. Ein Aspekt scheint uns jedoch erstaunlich zu kurz zu kommen: die Pflicht des Staates zum Schutz von Leben und körperlicher Unversehrtheit. Continue reading >>On Publishers, Carriers, and Bookstores
The next American election is just days away, so you’d think that most American politicians would be focusing on campaigning either for their own election (or re-election) or for their colleagues and allies who are running now to attain or retain elective office. But not this week. Weirdly enough, the United States Senate took time off from campaigning—even though the official election date is next Tuesday, and millions of American voters are voting in advance of the election or have already voted—to host a hearing whose nominal purpose was to discuss whether a formerly obscure but now hotly disputed statute known as “Section 230,” which plays a central role in limiting legal liability for internet services, needs to be updated. Continue reading >>
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30 October 2020
Die Mär vom „Kriegskabinett“
Werden wir von einem „Kriegskabinett“ regiert? Die gestrige Regierungserklärung der Kanzlerin wurde von massiven Zwischenrufen begleitet. In Reaktion darauf betonte der Bundestagspräsident, das am Vortag durchgeführte Treffen zwischen der Kanzlerin und den MinisterpräsidentInnen sei im Grundgesetz so vorgesehen. Das ist natürlich weder richtig noch falsch. Continue reading >>Filling the Power Vacuum
Massive protests broke out after the Kyrgyz parliamentary elections on October 4, 2020. What unfolded in the aftermath is a political saga that nobody could have expected. At the moment, Sadyr Japarov, a convicted criminal, is acting as president and prime minister and moving forward with a number of unconstitutional initiatives. They could erase all positive achievements that Kyrgyzstan was able to reach in the course of the last fifteen years. Continue reading >>In Defence of Green Civil Disobedience
Throughout history, failure of the state to address and redress pressing social problems has given rise to political acts of civil disobedience. While activists typically claim that their illegal actions are justified either legally or morally in that they are necessary to protect a higher good, such necessity defences have so far been ‘notoriously unsuccessful’ before courts. Recent judicial developments suggest that this may be about to change, and that unlawful protest can be a legitimate response to a persistent pattern of state inaction. Continue reading >>
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29 October 2020
Ungleicher Schutz für Whistleblower
Bis zum 17. Dezember 2021 hat Deutschland Zeit, die europäische Whistleblowing-Richtlinie in deutsches Recht umzusetzen. Diese Richtlinie könnte Whistleblowern endlich den rechtlichen Schutz bieten, der ihnen in Deutschland aktuell fehlt. Allerdings strebt das Bundeswirtschaftsministerium eine auf europarechtliche Sachverhalte beschränkte „1:1-Umsetzung“ an. In der Praxis würde das zu unionsrechtlich induzierten, verfassungsrechtlich nicht zu rechtfertigenden Ungleichbehandlungen führen und damit den allgemeinen Gleichheitssatz verletzen. Ein bloßer Verweis auf die Kompetenzordnung zwischen der EU und dem deutschen Gesetzgeber ändert hieran nichts, denn nationale Souveränität vermittelt kein Recht auf legislative Willkür. Continue reading >>28 October 2020
Große Erwartungen
Vergangenen Sonntag, am 25. Oktober 2020, haben die Chilenen in einer historischen Abstimmung den Weg für eine neue Verfassung freigemacht. Schon über ein Jahr protestieren die Bürger des Landes und nun ist es ihnen gelungen, diese Proteste durch das Referendum auf eine demokratische Weise zu kanalisieren. Entsprechend hoch sind die Erwartungen an die neue, noch zu erarbeitende Verfassung. Continue reading >>
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26 October 2020
Auf der schiefen Bahn
Brandenburg und Thüringen haben 2019 als erste Bundesländer die politischen Parteien gesetzlich dazu verpflichtet, ihre Kandidatenlisten paritätisch aufzustellen. Das Verfassungsgericht Thüringen hatte das Landesgesetz am 15.7. 2020 kassiert, am 23.10.2020 hat nun auch das Verfassungsgericht Brandenburg das Landesparitätsgesetz einstimmig für verfassungswidrig erklärt. Der Versuch, die Parteien und ihre Mitglieder bei der Kandidatenauswahl inhaltlichen Vorgaben des Gesetzgebers zu unterwerfen, war von vornherein zum Scheitern verurteilt. Continue reading >>Dark Money Subverts the Rule of Law
During the recently completed United States Senate committee hearings for Donald Trump’s nominee for a seat on the Supreme Court, Amy Coney Barrett, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island used his time to try to demonstrate how right-wing groups, including the Federalist Society and Judicial Crisis Network, use dark money to shape the American judiciary. A common reaction, certainly on the part of those continually disadvantaged on the policy side, is that massive dark money investment in the legal system’s actors and outcomes subverts the rule of law. Although ordinary citizens, informed commentators, and political representatives make this claim, theorists have paid scant attention to explaining why this might be so. This omission is likely rooted in the sort of concept theorists think the rule of law is. Continue reading >>Women, Rape Law and the Illusory Sex Equality Clause in the Bangladeshi Constitution
Earlier in October, a video of a group of men attacking, stripping, and sexually assaulting a woman went viral in Bangladesh. Incidents of rape and sexual assaults like this are a window into understanding the state of sex-based inequality in a given society. The laws, however, must be taken into account as well, particularly if they reflect an essential male perspective and are written in gender-insensitive terms. I will explain below that in case of Bangladesh, sex-based inequality gets revealed when an illusory sex-equality clause of Bangladesh Constitution intersects with the country’s crippled commitment to the Women Convention, and sex-based inequality gets manifested through the retention of colonial-era substantive and procedural legal framework. Continue reading >>The Time to Speak Up
The European Commission’s Rule of Law Report 2020, in its Spanish chapter, highlights in particular the situation of the Judicial Council as a challenge: The mandate of its members has expired in December 2018, but its new members have not yet been appointed. To unblock this situation a proposal was introduced in Parliament, but the envisaged reform does not comply with EU standards and endangers judicial independence, as the European Commission and GRECO have warned. Continue reading >>
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24 October 2020
No more “Business as Usual”
The Polish Constitutional Court (“the Court”), once a proud institution and an effective check on the will of the majority, is now a shell of its former self. It has become a dangerous and unhinged institution that uses the judicial review both as a sword to punish the opponents and to promote the illiberal agenda of the ruling majority. Thursday’s abortion ruling is only the latest example. In these dark days we must always remember the old Constitutional Court and the liberal foundations it had laid for more than twenty years. More crucially, accepting the current constitutional oppression as “business as usual”, will carry the risk of losing the rule of law in Poland for good. Continue reading >>
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A Dubious Judgment by a Dubious Court
On 22 October 2020 Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal, dominated by judges appointed under the procedure introduced by the ruling right-wing populist PiS party, has determined that abortion due to foetal defects is unconstitutional, rejecting the most common of the few legal grounds for pregnancy termination. This ruling is very controversial and caused civil disquiet and protests. Continue reading >>23 October 2020
Vicarious Hegemony and the Anti-hegemonic Thrust of European Law: a Conversation
We are debating the specter of German Legal Hegemony. It’s a new dimension for most German lawyers. The prevailing view has been that Germany is at the receiving end and losing out. Many consider Germany as making a too small impact on European law because it’s too inflexible for its federalism and too inhibited for many reasons. Quite a few see the 2nd Senate of the BVerfG as the last institution defending law and reason against overbearing European institutions as Berlin politicians have largely given up. The symposium has provided a different picture. How to deepen learning from it? Today we propose a discussion which is both analytical and normative. Continue reading >>22 October 2020
Is there a Human Right to Indefinitely Run for Reelection?
In the next few months, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (I/A Court) shall issue an advisory opinion in order to clarify whether presidential reelection is a right arising from the American Convention on Human Rights and, if so, whether it can be restricted. This article addresses one of the aspects which will probably be elaborated upon in said opinion, that is to say the inadequate use of the conventionality control with a view to modifying, by means of a judicial decision, constitutional provisions whose scope should only be scrutinized by mechanisms of constitutional creation or reform under the rule of law. Continue reading >>
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21 October 2020
A Draft is no Infringement
In the last few weeks, little more has been said about the infringement action launched by the Commission against the UK at the beginning of October for failure to fulfil obligations under EU law in relation to the Withdrawal Agreement. However, not only has this not gone away, but the recent ratcheting up of ‘no deal’ tensions means that a claim may soon be made on the so-called insurance policy (the controversial clauses in the UK Internal Market Bill), turning the threatened breach into an actual one. After the Bill becomes law, and assuming that the controversial clauses remain, a minister may use those clauses to pass a statutory instrument, for example, forbidding any checks to be carried out on goods travelling from Great Britain into Northern Ireland. Some would argue that the threat is bad enough and itself justifies an infringement action. That may be so. However, the Commission’s action is still premature. Continue reading >>
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Es gibt keinen Besitzstandsschutz im Wahlrecht
Aktuell wird unter dem Stichwort „Parité“ über Klauseln im Wahlrecht debattiert, mit denen die Chancengleichheit für Frauen bei der Wahl zu den Parlamenten verbessert und auf eine gleichmäßige Verteilung politischer Mandate auf Frauen und Männer hingewirkt werden soll. Die Verfasserinnen dieser Stellungnahme melden sich in dieser Debatte zu Wort, um auf einen wichtigen Grundsatz hinzuweisen, der in einer demokratischen Ordnung so selbstverständlich wie notwendig sein sollte: den politischen Gestaltungsauftrag des Gesetzgebers, der sich auch auf die Ausgestaltung des Wahlrechts erstreckt. Es ist daher eine politische Entscheidung, geschlechterparitätische Regelungen im Wahlrecht vorzusehen und sie auszugestalten. Dies kann und muss in der Öffentlichkeit und in den Parlamenten diskutiert werden. Continue reading >>20 October 2020
Reinventing the European Union through Article 50?
Lech Wałęsa helped bringing down the Iron Curtain – now he takes his revolutionary spirit to the EU. His radical approach of institutional reform through abandonment of the current treaties deserves serious consideration. Continue reading >>Recognizing Turkey’s Anti-Rule of Law System
On October 13, a criminal court of first instance defied the authority of the Turkish Constitutional Court (TCC). A similar challenge to the TCC’s authority by a first instance court had occurred over two years ago. In present-day Turkey, however, it is wrong to see such fundamental violations of the rule of law as an unfortunate exception to an abstractly conceived system of rules. Rather, they should be considered as the manifestation of a well-functioning anti-rule of law system. Continue reading >>
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19 October 2020
Towards a European Court of Fundamental Rights
With its judgments on bulk data retention issued at the beginning of this month, the European Court of Justice has entitled itself to examine virtually all surveillance measures in the digital sphere. In doing so, it has once more clarified its positioning as the decisive Fundamental Rights Court in Europe. In the midst of the ultra vires-storm caused by the PSPP-judgement of the Bundesverfassungsgericht – and questions arising with regard to German Legal Hegemony in Europe – a true shift of power to the ECJ can be spotted which is, surprisingly, supported by the national constitutional courts. Continue reading >>
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It’s Democracy, Stupid!
Kann man unter Corona-Umständen Parteitage abhalten, um Wahllisten aufzustellen oder (siehe CDU) einen neuen Parteivorstand zu wählen? Der Gesetzgeber hat offenbar Zweifel. Ein neues Gesetz soll die Aufstellung von Kandidat*innen für die Bundestagswahl ebenso sicherstellen soll wie die innerparteiliche Willensbildung insgesamt. Bemerkenswert daran ist insbesondere, in wessen Hände die Entscheidung über diese demokratiesensiblen Fragen gelegt wird – und in welche nicht. Continue reading >>In (Partial) Praise and Defense of Justice Engin Yildirim
The Turkish Constitutional Court is yet again front and center in Turkish politics – and yet again because a first instance criminal court defied its ruling. What is new this time is that a justice of the Court, Engin Yildirim, chimed in, cleverly critiquing the defiant first instance criminal court – a move from an otherwise reticent institution that surprised lawyers, pundits, and politicians alike. Continue reading >>
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Diminishing Authority
The Turkish Constitutional Court ruled on 17 September 2020 that the right to be elected and right to personal liberty of Enis Berberoğlu, an opposition MP, have been violated. As a remedy to this violation, the TCC ordered the Istanbul 14th Criminal Court of First Instance to start a re-trial in order to eliminate the consequences of these violations. Yet, the Court of First Instance did not implement this decision. The unfolding of these events creates political and legal controversy and harms the – already vulnerable – credibility and legitimacy of the TCC. Continue reading >>
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18 October 2020
Constitutionalising the EU Foreign and Security Policy
In the appeal case of Bank Refah Kargaran v Council (C-134/19 P), the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has held that the EU Courts have jurisdiction over claims for damages in the area of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). This is coherent with the rationale of the exceptional exclusion of jurisdiction under CFSP and confirms that the Union’s commitment to the rule of law extends to CFSP. Continue reading >>16 October 2020
Kein Wahlkampf auf Staatskosten
In der letzten Woche hat der Bundestag eine Änderung des Abgeordnetengesetzes beschlossen. Künftig müssen Abgeordnete mit einem Ordnungsgeld rechnen, wenn sie ihre vom Bundestag bezahlten Mitarbeiter unzulässig für nicht-mandatsbezogene Tätigkeiten einsetzen. Damit soll vor allem verhindert werden, dass Abgeordnete im Wahlkampf unzulässig ihre parlamentarischen Mitarbeiter zum hauptamtlichen Wahlkampfteam umfunktionieren. Hintergrund ist ein entsprechender Hinweis des BVerfG, das die bisherigen Regelungen als nicht ausreichend bemängelt hatte. Bei genauer Hinsicht ist der Bundestag den Forderungen aus Karlsruhe aber nicht nachgekommen, sondern hat ein Aliud beschlossen. Aus praktischen wie aus verfassungsrechtlichen Gründen läuft der Versuch, den Einsatz von Abgeordnetenmitarbeitern im bzw. für den Wahlkampf zu unterbinden, weitgehend ins Leere. Continue reading >>
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15 October 2020
‘Keyword Warrants’ Make Every Search A Risk
How many times did you search google today? Few of us know the answer. It’s not just the queries entered into the ubiquitous google search bars, but the countless other apps in the Google ecosystem, constantly harvesting our every question to refine their picture of even the most intimate spheres of our life. In the hands of advertisers, this technology is creepy. But when it is fully exploited by law enforcement agencies, it can be a profound danger to civil society and human rights. Continue reading >>
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We are looking for a part-time (50%) editor in our office in Berlin. Continue reading >>
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Mitch McConnell, The Supreme Court, and The Specter of Politicization
There is no doubt that the Senate Majority Leader is a hypocrite. His bad faith, however, may have a cathartic effect on judicial appointments. Continue reading >>
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Justice and Independence, an Actual Problem in Spain
On October 13, the Spanish Government presented a bill to Parliament with one main objective: to reduce the parliamentary majorities to appoint the members of the General Council of the Judiciary. Its purpose is to overcome a political blockage in the renewal of its members, which has already lasted two years. But the government's attempt, somehow awkward, has been quickly compared to maneuvers to control the judiciary in Poland and Hungary. However, this bill and those exaggerated criticisms conceal a much more relevant and, above all, sadder reality. Continue reading >>14 October 2020
Anti-Hegemony and Its Discontents
Long before the fighting ceased, Jean Monnet was already planning to integrate a defeated Germany into “a Europe united on terms of equality.” The idea had been brewing in the French and Italian resistance during World War II, even since Germany had been defeated last time around, and before then, in other forms, too. The key to bringing the warring nations together in solidarity was, as the Schuman Declaration would explain, taming the age-old animosity between Germany and France in a supranational project “open to all countries willing to take part.” The aim, in the words of the Treaty of Rome would be an “ever closer union among the peoples of Europe.” Continue reading >>
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The Ombudsman before the Polish Constitutional Tribunal
On 9th September 2020, the 5-years term of the current Polish Ombudsman (Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich, Commissioner for Human Rights) Adam Bodnar, has ended. The Parliament did not select a new person for this position yet. Thus, following the Article 3.6 of the Law on the Commissioner, Professor Bodnar stays in the office until the appointment of the new Commissioner for Human Rights. However a group of MPs demands the Constitutional Court to delete this legal basis, leaving the office without its head. The Court wants to decide on this case on 20th October. Continue reading >>
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The End of the German Legal Culture?
In this post, I argue that: (I) the influence of German jurisprudence on the legal systems in Central and Eastern Europe results from transfers of legal knowledge and “cooperative adaptation” of elites in the new democracies; (II) the German legal hegemony is in fact a hegemony of reason and a culture of justification; (III) the decision of Bundesverfassungsgericht in PSPP is an attempt to maintain the culture of justification in view of its inevitable end. Continue reading >>
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An Emergency within an Emergency within an Emergency
On September 17, 2020, I published a blogpost on Verfassungsblog, warning that while COVID-19 has not, at the time, been used in Israel as a justification for banning protests, there was reason for concern. The concern materialized on September 30, 2020. The Knesset amended the Coronavirus Law to allow the government to declare a “special coronavirus emergency situation” which raises an array of questions. Continue reading >>13 October 2020
Mitgemeint
Das Bundesjustizministerium hat einen Referentenentwurf zur „Fortentwicklung des Sanierungs- und Insolvenzrechts (SanInsFoG)“ im generischen Femininum formuliert. Das führt zu veritablem Zoff in der Koalition. Das Bundesinnenministerium hat den Entwurf offenbar sogleich gestoppt, „aus verfassungsrechtlichen Gründen“: Ein Gesetzentwurf "in ausschließlich weiblicher Begriffsform" gelte rechtlich gesehen möglicherweise nur für Frauen. Seufz. Wer sagt es ihnen? Continue reading >>The Last Days of the Independent Supreme Court of Hungary?
Ordinary courts seem to have remained the last bulwark of individual freedom and the rule of law since the Fidesz government has successfully undermined other nominally democratic institutions, including the Constitutional Court. While the recently published EU Rule of law report discusses the problems of judicial independence in great detail, so far, ordinary courts have resisted political pressure relatively well, largely because of the ruling party’s failure to capture the professional leadership of the judiciary. Various legislative changes by the government in recent years coupled with the upcoming election of the Supreme Court’s new Chief Justice, however, could be fatal to the independence of Hungary’s entire justice system. Continue reading >>
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Bayerische Gleichheit
Bisher ging es zumeist um Fragen der Rechtsgrundlage oder der Verhältnismäßigkeit, wenn von staatlichen Maßnahmen zur Eindämmung der Corona-Pandemie und ihrer Verfassungsmäßigkeit die Rede war. Im Zusammenhang mit dem sog. (bayerischen) Beherbergungsverbot rückt nunmehr aber ein drittes verfassungsrechtliches Gebot in den Fokus, das in den meisten bisherigen Fällen eher am Rande gestriffen wurde: Das Gebot der Gleichbehandlung bzw. der allgemeine Gleichheitssatz. Continue reading >>How Not to Become Hegemonial
I have to start with a confession: if it was not for the Bundesverfassungsgericht and German legal scholarship, I would have not become the lawyer I am today. Writing a PhD in the Max-Planck-Institute in Heidelberg, attending classes by giants of German public law taught me to appreciate the famous German “Rechtsdogmatik”, a term that can only be poorly translated by “legal doctrine”. The conceptual sophistication and clarity of thoughts, the persuasive power of reasoning, the attention for details and the elegance with which the lack of answers to certain questions is concealed created for me an aura of infallibility and self-evident truth. I also remember my condescending attitude when I met foreign guests in the Max-Planck Institute who were not familiar enough with this constitutional language, or even dared to challenge some of its conclusions. Being inside this world felt reassuring, safe and also elevating. After wandering through the legal education of post-communist Hungary I finally saw the light. Continue reading >>
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The Ugly German
The novel’s two ugly Americans provide useful models for two facets of hegemony as Gramsci theorized it. Hegemony, he insisted, is more than a state of cultural domination. It is better understood as a process of socio-historical change that takes place before power is institutionalized. The two drivers of the hegemonic process Gramsci theorized are consensus and coercion. Continue reading >>
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12 October 2020
Kein rechtsfreier Raum
In einem Brief vom 5. August dieses Jahres drohten die US-Senatoren Cruz, Cotton und Johnson der Fährhafen Sassnitz GmbH mit nichts anderem, als der totalen wirtschaftlichen Zerstörung. Der Grund für diesen Einschüchterungsversuch: hier werden russische Rohrverlegungsschiffe für das Erdgas-Pipeline-Projekt Nord Stream 2 umgebaut und so für die Fertigstellung des Projekts vorbereitet. Die Rechtmäßigkeit der angedrohten extraterritorialen Sanktionen ist völkerrechtlich umstritten. Deshalb hat der wissenschaftliche Dienst des Bundestages am 8. September eine Ausarbeitung veröffentlicht, die überprüfen soll, ob solche Maßnahmen völkerrechtskonform sind. Die Argumentation des wissenschaftlichen Dienstes überzeugt dabei jedoch weder auf der Ebene des Allgemeinen Völkerrechts, noch auf der des Völkervertragsrechts. Continue reading >>Constitutional Borrowings, Not Hegemony
The question about the legal hegemony of Germany was raised by comments from lawyers, but also politicians, in connection with the - undoubtedly - controversial decision of the German Constitutional Tribunal in the PSPP case. Armin von Bogdandy’s introduction refers primarily to the problem of the Europeanization of Germany vs. the Germanization of Europe in the context of European integration and Sabino Cassese’s description of “some specific decisions of these more recent EU-specific decisions of the Second Senate of the German Federal Constitutional Court as an attempt to put a German dog leash on European institutions". But it also refers to the past of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the "imposition" of "an enlightened, soft neo-liberalism" on the countries of this region (Bogdan Iancu). In the case of Poland, because Kaczyński’s government seems to be a persecutor against the proceedings which the German jurisprudence provides, "the secret crypt in which the seeds of its spirit will be protected...". (Carl Schmitt). Continue reading >>
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