03 March 2021
A Paean to Judicial (Self) Restraint
The UK Supreme Court Shamima Begum decision is widely reported to be a win for former home secretary Sajid Javid who had stripped Begum of her citizenship. Yet, is it really a vindication of this action? The decision of the Supreme Court is not based on a factual assessment of Begum’s case but only on whether she has to be given permission to return to the UK to participate in an effective and fair manner in the immigration appeal. A limited decision, and by no means a final adjudication on Begum’s deprivation of citizenship case. Continue reading >>
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03 September 2019
Nostalgische Justizstaatsskepsis
Jonathan Sumption ist einer der schillerndsten Intellektuellen des Vereinigten Königreichs. In seinem neuen Buch kritisiert er, wie das „Imperium des Rechts“ immer größere Landgewinne verzeichnet und in immer mehr Bereiche des täglichen Lebens vordringt. „Trials of the State“ ist wie ein Volkshochschulkurs im Granteln über den Traditionsverfall im Recht einer modernen Gesellschaft mit ihrem inhärenten Drang zur Verrechtlichung. Continue reading >>01 June 2019
Lies in Politics
On Boris Johnson, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and other active or passive issues of constitutional truthfulness. Continue reading >>05 March 2019
Die Beschränkung des politischen Streitraums: Warum das Problem nicht (nur) bei Normenkontrollen der Opposition liegt
FDP, Grüne und Linke haben angekündigt, beim Bundesverfassungsgericht einen Normenkontrollantrag gegen den reformierten § 219a StGB zu stellen. Dies hat Alexander Thiele auf diesem Blog kritisiert: Die abstrakte Normenkontrolle werde politisch instrumentalisiert und der politische Streitraum auf diese Weise eingeengt. Beides sind aber keine speziellen Probleme der abstrakten Normenkontrolle oder gar einer einzelnen Klage, sondern allgemeine Phänomene. Kritik und Änderungsvorschläge müssten deshalb eher bei der Institution Bundesverfassungsgericht ansetzen. Continue reading >>17 September 2018
Mango Scented Sovereignty: Pakistan’s Chief Justice Saqib Nisar and Baba-justice
Politicization of the judiciary is a global trend. Pakistan’s Supreme Court is a particularly worrying example. With an ad-campaign, the Court is currently collecting donations for an ambitious dam project to resolve Pakistan’s looming water crises. Chief Justice Saqib Nisar would certainly prefer, as he convincingly repeats, a more pliant courtly existence. But the catastrophic shortcomings of the executive and legislature force him to take on big infrastructure projects – the failures have also pushed him to tackle school curriculums, fees for private medical school, pension of bank employees, random quality-checks in hospitals, surprise inspections of lower courts and ordering the arrest of a high ranking police officer who shared indecent images of his estranged wife on Facebook. Continue reading >>04 April 2017
“A Roguish and Unpopular President is potentially an Occasion for the Judiciary to Shine”
Will Democrats be able to block Neil Gorsuch's confirmation as Supreme Court Justice, and how will it affect the Court if they won't? Mattias Kumm on the latest developments in the nomination process and the judiciary's role in holding the Trump administration in check. Continue reading >>07 October 2015
Schrems v. Commissioner: A Biblical Parable of Judicial Power
We might celebrate the Court’s decision in Case C-362/14 as an improbable victory of good (data-privacy) over evil (consumer and intelligence data abuses). But I want to offer some words of caution about god-like judicial power. Continue reading >>
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