German Association of Judges

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The DRB office in Kronenstrasse

The German Association of Judges (DRB), based in Berlin, is the largest professional association of judges and public prosecutors . It is divided into 16 regional associations, five associations at the highest federal courts and four professional associations of individual specialized jurisdictions ( labor , financial , social jurisdiction , military service judges ). Around 17,000 judges and prosecutors belong to it through its 25 member associations.

Since January 1, 2020, Barbara Stockinger, judge at the Munich Higher Regional Court , and Joachim Lüblinghoff, the presiding judge at the Hamm Higher Regional Court , have been co-chairs of the German Association of Judges .

The association headquarters of the German Association of Judges has been located in the government district in Berlin-Mitte since 1999. It is the first point of contact for inquiries from parliaments and ministries, the media and society. The association's business in the capital has been headed by Federal Managing Director Sven Rebehn since 2012.

The German Association of Judges organizes the German Judges and Public Prosecutor 's Day (RiStA Day) every three years . The last day of judges and prosecutors took place in Weimar in 2017. He publishes the Deutsche Richterzeitung and awards his human rights award every three years to a judge, public prosecutor or lawyer who has made a special contribution to the realization of human rights.

The DRB is a member of the International Judges 'Association , the European Judges' Association and the IRZ Foundation . He is the Institutional Observer of the European Law Institute .

history

Memorial plaque in the office of the DRB. The judges and public prosecutors of Jewish origin who were persecuted during the Nazi regime are commemorated here.

The German Association of Judges was founded on January 1, 1909 as an amalgamation of several national associations. The judges, who were still civil servants at the time, campaigned for full factual and personal independence . On May 25, 1933, the German Association of Judges, which was in no way negative about the elimination of the Weimar Republic, joined the Association of National Socialist German Jurists (BNSDJ) , within which it initially remained until it finally dissolved at the end of the year. It was not until October 1949 that the old Federal Republic was re-established . After the completion of German unity, associations of judges and public prosecutors from the eastern German states also joined.

On March 1, 1999, the DRB relocated its federal office from Bonn to Berlin.

Goals and Positions

As a professional association, the German Association of Judges campaigns for the interests of its members vis-à-vis employers , parliaments and the general public and tries to ensure that laws are measured and practicable through statements on legal and professional policy legislative projects. In addition to promoting legislation , the aims of the German Association of Judges are to strengthen the reputation of the third power and the rule of law, to ensure the high quality of justice and to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The DRB is committed to the following projects, among others:

Self-government of the judiciary
In the political arena, the question is currently being discussed as to whether it should be possible in the future for the justice system to no longer be administered by the Ministry of Justice as an executive body , but to perform this task itself. The DRB strives for such self-administration . It is argued that the judiciary should be independent according to the principle of separation of powers ; management by the executive runs counter to this principle.
Adequately resourced judiciary
Complaints from diesel drivers, from air travelers due to delayed flights, billing disputes between clinics and cash registers, the fight against hate crime on the Internet as well as the expansion of asset recovery in the case of clan crime or extended judicial reservations in the event of forced restraint of patients and prisoners - the tasks of judges and public prosecutors are increasing. In addition, according to an evaluation of the judicial statistics, the length of proceedings in criminal matters is increasing steadily, except for the higher regional courts. The tense situation is exacerbated because more than 10,000 lawyers will retire and have to be replaced by 2030. With the pact for the rule of law , which the federal and state governments concluded in 2019, 2000 additional judges and public prosecutors are to be hired by 2021.
Abolition of the external right to issue instructions
The external right to issue instructions allows the respective ministers of justice to influence the work of the public prosecutor's office in certain cases . In order to avoid any appearance of political influence on the work of the public prosecutor's office, the Association of Judges advocates the elimination of the ministries' right to issue instructions.
Salary
The association is committed to an officially appropriate salary . He is of the opinion that it is not constitutionally regulated in all federal states.
Judicial ethics
The association is committed to professional ethics . He discusses questions of professional ethics in order to provide suggestions for reflection on judicial and public prosecutorial activities.
Data retention
The DRB advocates the so-called data retention . He is against the planned maximum storage periods of ten weeks for traffic data and four weeks for location data. He advocates longer storage periods when there are high legal hurdles for access.
E-justice
The German judiciary has not yet made it into the digital age. The DRB therefore calls on politicians to do more to switch to secure, fast data traffic and to invest more in the development of electronic files and modern hardware in the courts.

In addition to these topics, the DRB also deals, for example, with the planned merging of social and administrative jurisdiction , judicial independence or legal training .

criticism

The North Rhine-Westphalian state chairman of the German Association of Judges was quoted in the press in October 2012 as saying that the proportion of women in the judiciary was too high. The 62 percent share of women among new hires is worsening the personnel situation. Because many women lawyers were absent for family times for a few years.

Human rights award

Since 1991 the German Association of Judges has awarded a human rights award every three years . This honors judges, public prosecutors, lawyers and their organizations from all over the world who have “committed themselves to the preservation and enforcement of the rule of law, using life, health, personal freedom or accepting other serious personal disadvantages”. The association wants to make a contribution to [RC1] protecting and strengthening general human rights and fundamental freedoms. A recognition amount of 5000 euros is associated with the award.

In 2009, the Syrian human rights activist and lawyer Anwar al-Bunni was honored, who was imprisoned near Damascus from May 2006 to May 2011 for comments critical of the regime . In 2012 the Colombian judge Iván Velásquez Gómez was honored. In 2017 the Vietnamese lawyer Nguyen Van Dai received an award.

Aid to Colombia

With "Colombia Aid", the German Association of Judges committed itself to the relatives and survivors of those who were killed in the judiciary in 1989. Among other things, the aid fund provides funds to enable judicial members at risk of death to escape - mostly temporarily - within Colombia or abroad enable. The socio-psychological care and medical treatment of destitute victims are also financed with the donations from Colombia Aid. In addition, the school and vocational training of orphans and half-orphans, the professional reintegration or retraining of widows as well as small loans for business start-ups are supported.

Alliance for German Law

Together with the Federal Ministry of Justice and other legal professional organizations such as the Federal Bar Association and the German Bar Association , the DRB is organized in the "Alliance for German Law". The aim is to apply German law abroad. In the course of implementing this alliance, a brochure entitled “Law - Made in Germany” was published in 2008. In February 2011, in a Franco-German initiative, the alliance and the French “ Fondation pour le droit continental ” presented a brochure to strengthen continental law in the global competition of legal systems.

TTIP - Public Statement in February 2016

In February 2016, the German Association of Judges rejected the arbitral tribunals in a statement. They see "neither a legal basis nor a need for such a court", "the creation of special courts for individual groups of law seekers" is the wrong way. A public court for investors would restrict the legislative powers of the member states and the Union too much. He also lacks the necessary legal basis. The procedure for appointing judges does not meet the international requirements for the independence of courts. The member states are constitutional states which open up and guarantee access to law to all those seeking justice through state jurisdiction. It is the task of the member states to ensure access to justice for all and to ensure that the courts are appropriately equipped to ensure that foreign investors have access to it. The establishment of an ICS is therefore "the wrong way to guarantee legal security". The independence of the judges in a special court is also questionable. The German Association of Judges also called on the German and European legislators to largely curb the recourse to arbitration in the area of ​​international investor protection.

Further representation of interests of the judges

Other interest groups of judges in Germany are of the Republican Association of Judges , the Magistrates Association and the New Judges Association .

Web links

Commons : Deutscher Richterbund  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Albert Oeckl (inception), Pocket Book of Public Life , 67th year 2018, p. 726.
  2. ^ Presidium. In: www.drb.de . German Judges Association, January 1, 2020, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  3. Press release from 7.2.2012. In: verbaende.com. February 7, 2012, accessed August 30, 2019 .
  4. Information page on Judges and Public Prosecutors Day. In: https://www.rista-tag.de/ . Judges and Public Prosecutor's Day, accessed August 23, 2019 .
  5. Dr. Wilhelm Tappert: "Moving history - 110 years of the German Judges Association" in Deutsche Richterzeitung 05/2019, p. 166 . Ed .: Deutscher Richterbund eV CHBeck, Berlin.
  6. ^ History - The German Association of Judges has been fighting for independence since 1909. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, December 28, 2018, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  7. All statements at a glance. In: https://www.drb.de/ . German Association of Judges, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  8. ^ Information page of the DRB about its goals. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, December 28, 2018, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  9. The topics of the German Association of Judges. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  10. German judges newspaper . No. 10 , 2019, pp. 329 .
  11. See: Rechtspflege Strafgerichte - Fachserie 10 Reihe 2.3 - 2018. (PDF; 1.9 MB) In: Destatis. Federal Statistical Office , pp. 39, 77, 119 , accessed on January 14, 2020 . with the administration of justice criminal courts - Fachserie 10 Reihe 2.3 - 2017. (PDF; 1.9 MB) In: Destatis. Federal Statistical Office , pp. 40, 78, 120 , accessed on January 14, 2020 .
  12. ^ Discussion between the Chancellor and the heads of government of the federal states. (PDF; 132 KB) January 31, 2019, p. 2 , accessed on January 14, 2020 .
  13. Abolish the right to give political instructions. June 4, 2019, accessed January 14, 2020 .
  14. A service for judges and public prosecutors - information on salary, pension and subsidy law. German Association of Judges, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  15. Ethics - Representatives of the third state authority have a special responsibility. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, December 28, 2018, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  16. Data retention can be implemented in conformity with the constitution and European law. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, January 15, 2015, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  17. ↑ Advancing e-justice. Retrieved May 27, 2019 .
  18. Ten-point paper to strengthen the rule of law ( Memento of the original from August 16, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , legal policy cornerstones for the 18th electoral term  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.drb.de
  19. Katja Sponholz: Judges' Association warns of “too many” women in the judiciary. In: http://www.derwesten.de/ . Funke Medien NRW, October 18, 2012, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  20. DRB press release from December 17, 2009  ( page no longer available , search in web archivesInfo: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.drb.de  
  21. Human Rights Prize - Strengthening general human rights and fundamental freedoms worldwide. In: https://www.drb.de/ . German Association of Judges, December 28, 2018, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  22. ^ DRB human rights laureate Van Dai in freedom. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, June 8, 2018, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  23. ↑ Aid to Colombia - Since 1989, more than 1.8 million euros in donations have been collected. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, January 14, 2018, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  24. Homepage of "Law - Made in Germany"
  25. Information page "Continental Law"
  26. Opinion # 4/16 on the establishment of an investment court for TTIP - proposal of the European Commission of 16.09.2015 and 12.11.2015. In: www.drb.de . German Association of Judges, February 1, 2016, accessed on August 23, 2019 .
  27. Petra Pinzler: TTIP: German Association of Judges rejects arbitration courts. In: www.zeit.de . Die Zeit , February 3, 2016, accessed on February 24, 2016 .