22 December 2025
Egenberger
The Egenberger decision is not only about church labour law, but touches on fundamental issues of national and European constitutional law. By integrating the requirements of EU law while maintaining domestic specificities, the decision provides a valuable example of how to manage different layers of fundamental rights. Nevertheless, the Egenberger decision carries an element of surprise. The FCC performed a Solange test, elaborating on the question of whether the relevant European standard falls short of the minimum standard required under German law and therefore justifies an exception to the primacy of EU law. Continue reading >>
0 
09 December 2022
An early Christmas Gift from Karlsruhe?
The 6 December Karlsruhe ruling on the constitutional complaints against the ‘Act Ratifying the EU Own Resources Decision’ will be received by many as a Saint Nicholas present. This time, the Federal Constitutional Court avoided the head-on collision with the EU it caused with its PSPP judgment two and a half years ago. Instead, it opted for a seemingly constructive assessment of the EU’s pandemic recovery instrument. In particular, it found that the ORD did not manifestly exceed the competences conferred on the EU – i.e., it was not ultra vires – and did not affect the constitutional identity of the Basic Law. While the ruling is not as constraining as some might have feared, it does not give card blanche for a more permanent EU fiscal capacity. Continue reading >>
0