Growing demands of recent time to strengthen judicial independence both institutionally and procedurally formed the starting point for the research project. With the changing role of adjudication in the democratic legal order there is a need to refine the notion of judicial independence. This relates in particular to the appointment of judges. The ongoing discussion on necessary reforms which may also be ascribed to the influence of public international law regularly includes transnational references. As a matter of human rights protection detailed guidelines for independent domestic courts have been elaborated as evidenced for example by the extensive case law of the European Court of Human Rights on the right to a fair trial. In order to assist its implementation on the domestic level a careful analysis of this jurisprudence is needed. This is of particular importance for transitional countries in Eastern Europe, where the establishment of an independent judiciary plays a crucial role in the transformation towards democracy and the rule of law. Without judicial independence the protection of the rule of law and the protection of human rights is futile. Furthermore, European laws is of increasing significance for the functioning of the judiciary in EU accession countries. In an effort to support appropriate reforms consistent with international standards there is a need to consider the experience by States with previous similar developments. Therefore comparative law plays a central role in the entire research project.

Individual projects (including publications):

Anja Seibert-Fohr, Die Bestellung von Verfassungsrichtern im Spannungsfeld von Demokratie und Rechtsstaatlichkeit (Habilitation in Bearbeitung)

Lydia F. Müller, Richterliche Unabhängigkeit und Unparteilichkeit: Vorgaben der Europäischen Menschenrechtskonvention und ihre Umsetzung in den östlichen Europaratsstaaten (Dissertation in Bearbeitung)

Anja Seibert-Fohr, Constitutional Guarantees of Judicial Independence in Germany, in: Riedel/Wolfrum (eds.), Recent Trends in German and European Constitutional Law. German Reports Presented to the XVII. International Congress on Comparative Law, Utrecht, 16 to 22 July, Springer 2006, S. 267- 287.

Lydia F. Müller, Buchbesprechung: Thiedemann, Hilke: Judicial Independence - Eine rechtsvergleichende Untersuchung der Sicherung unabhängiger Rechtsprechung in Südafrika und Namibia. Baden-Baden, 2007; Horn, Nico/Bösl, Anton: The Independence of the Judiciary in Namibia. Windhoek, Macmillan Education Namibia Publ., 2008. In: Zeitschrift für ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht (ZaöRV), 69/3, 817-827 (2009)

Richterbestellung im Verfassungswandel - Der Einfluss des Individualrechtsschutzes auf Funktion und Auswahl oberster Richter in Europa. In: DER STAAT, Vol.49, 130-156 (2010).

Anja Seibert-Fohr, Judicial Independence in EU accessions: The emergence of a European basic principle, 52 German Yearbook of International Law (2009), 405-436 (2010).

Lydia F. Müller, Judicial Independence as a Council of Europe Standard, 52 German Yearbook of International Law (2009), 461-486 (2010)

 

Anja Seibert-Fohr, Advisory opinion of the Minerva Research Group on the Council of Europe „Draft Recommendation on Judges: Independence, Efficiency and Responsibilities“ (in German).