14 July 2025
Turkey’s Gerontocratic Constitutional Moment
In less than a year, Turkish politics has undergone a profound realignment. It began in October 2024 with a remarkable speech by Devlet Bahçeli, leader of the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and President Erdoğan’s chief coalition partner. In one of the most cryptic U-turns of his career, Bahçeli—long a hardliner on the Kurdish question—proposed reopening the long-frozen peace process with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), the separatist armed group that has waged a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state. In short, the tectonic plates of Turkish politics are shifting, and at the center of this transition stands a cast of aging men, each well past seventy. Continue reading >>
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Stellungnahme zur Causa „Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf“
Über 300 Rechtswissenschaftler*innen protestieren in dieser Stellungnahme nachdrücklich gegen die Art und Weise, wie im Rahmen der Richterwahl zum Bundesverfassungsgericht in der Politik und in der Öffentlichkeit mit Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf umgegangen wurde. Dieser Umgang ist geeignet, die Kandidatin, die beteiligten Institutionen und mittelfristig über den Verfall der angemessenen Umgangskultur die gesamte demokratische Ordnung zu beschädigen. Continue reading >>Starlink, the Cloud, and Corporate Dependency
The Trump Administration has repeatedly pushed for the adoption or licensing of Elon Musk’s satellite company Starlink in trade negotiations. But as Musk’s strategic use of his satellite service reveals, corporate control over critical infrastructure inevitably translates into political power. Power that companies may wield in alignment with, or in opposition to, state interests. The solution, however, may not lie in stronger state oversight alone, but in democratizing corporations themselves. Continue reading >>
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13 July 2025
Assets Without Alibi
Păcurar is yet another version of the familiar cat-and-mouse game between anticorruption agencies and corrupt public officials: some public officials quietly amass real estate, luxury cars, financial investments, or cash, and – once confronted by anticorruption agencies to explain the difference from their declared legal income – rely on whimsical excuses. On 24 June 2025, the ECtHR held that wealth may be taken away if public officials cannot explain that very difference. This ruling completes the ECtHR’s endorsement of civil law instruments in the fight against corruption by fully disconnecting confiscation from any link to a crime. Continue reading >>
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Petro’s Schmittian Turn
On 11 June 2025, Colombian President Gustavo Petro issued a decree calling a national popular consultation on a package of long-stalled social reforms. The decree came after the Senate had explicitly rejected his formal request to hold such a vote – approval that is constitutionally required under Article 104 of the Constitution. This reveals something deeper and more dangerous: an increasingly Schmittian conception of democratic power, in which the president, claiming to represent a unified people, overrides institutional checks in the name of higher constitutional fidelity. Continue reading >>
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On the “Whims of Foreign Courts”
Last week, the UK High Court decided that the UK can continue to issue licences for F-35 components that go into a pool of spare parts which Israel can use on its existing F-35 jets. The finding by the High Court that the UK cannot exclude Israel as an end user for UK manufactured components because “the only way for the UK to ensure that its components do not reach Israel is for it to suspend all exports into the F-35 programme” raises pertinent questions with regard to the UK's compliance with the Arms Trade Treaty and other key provisions of international law. Continue reading >>
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12 July 2025
Von Worten zu Taten
Am 23. Juni 2025 trafen sich die 27 Außenminister der Europäischen Union (EU) in Brüssel, um über die Zukunft des Assoziierungsabkommens mit Israel (AA EU–Israel) zu beraten. Das Außenministertreffen selbst führte zu keiner Entscheidung über eine mögliche Aussetzung des Abkommens. Gemäß Art. 21 EUV ist die EU jedoch verpflichtet, im Einklang mit dem Völkerrecht zu handeln und bei festgestellten Menschenrechtsverletzungen auf der Grundlage des AA EU–Israel zu reagieren. Andernfalls riskiert die EU, gegen ihr eigenes Primärrecht zu verstoßen. Continue reading >>
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Beyond the Fog of War
Superlatives are often overused - but in the case of the Grand Chamber judgment in Ukraine, The Netherlands v Russia, delivered on 9 July 2025, they are not only justified but arguably inadequate. This case stands out as one of the most consequential and complex in the history of the European Court of Human Rights. It addresses systemic human rights violations committed in the context of an ongoing international armed conflict and during a prolonged period of occupation. Continue reading >>
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The Catalan Amnesty in the Spanish Constitutional Court
On 26 June 2025, the Spanish Constitutional Court ruled that the Amnesty Act “for the Institutional, Political and Social Normalization in Catalonia” is constitutional. The decision appears to reflect a pragmatic rather than a principled understanding of the amnesty – in other words, it treats the amnesty as an instrument to normalise the political situation in Catalonia rather than a measure for redressing possible rights violations resulting from the criminal convictions. Continue reading >>
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The NGO’s Guide to Authoritarianism
It appears that whenever expert civil society organizations release a legal analysis of draft laws that restrict fundamental rights and freedoms, authoritarian governments learn from their mistakes and avoid them in the next round. One could witness such a situation when the Foreign Agents Registration Bill was introduced in the Slovak parliament last spring, and the public watchdog and advocacy organization VIA IURIS tried to stand against this legislation. In one year, the Slovak parliament considered three versions of the Bill, with each version making it more challenging to fight in court. Continue reading >>
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11 July 2025
Spanish Judges on Strike
“Save the rule of Law in Spain”, read a banner held by a number of unidentified judges who were demonstrating before the premises of the Spanish Supreme Court, a couple of days ago in Madrid. But save it – from whom? The demonstrators would no doubt reply: from Pedro Sánchez and his government, which has undertaken the first serious reform of the Spanish judiciary since the transition to democracy. But the reform is not the only reason why the Spanish judges have been on strike. Continue reading >>The Finish Line of Caster Semenya’s Judicial Marathon
Caster Semenya was wronged, and Switzerland – due to the inaction of the Swiss Federal Supreme Court (SFSC) – was held responsible by the Grand Chamber (GC) of the ECtHR. This conclusion to a long judicial marathon is an important vindication for an athlete who saw her career destroyed by a process that violated her right to a fair hearing. The case will be remembered as a significant landmark that will affect the field of transnational sports law and governance for years to come. Continue reading >>
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Laboratories of Authoritarianism
In Mahmoud v. Taylor, the U.S. Supreme Court expanded the 1st Amendment Free Exercise Clause to grant conservative religious parents a constitutional right to remove their children from any classroom where a teacher includes LGBTQAI+ people in the curriculum. In effect, the Court has allowed public schools to discourage mutual tolerance, parents to opt out of Equal Protection, and fringe legal strategists to continue to use children’s constitutional rights as a test case for authoritarianism. In doing so, the erosion of children’s rights becomes the foundation upon which other rights are eroded. Continue reading >>
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Zementierte Privilegien
Der erste Senat des Bundesverfassungsgerichts hat in seinem Beschluss vom 25. Juni 2025 entschieden, dass die Pflicht zur Abgabe einer Anschlusszusage bei promovierten wissenschaftlichen Mitarbeiter*innen gegen Art. 5 Abs. 3 S. 1 GG verstößt. Der Beschluss macht einmal mehr deutlich, dass in Deutschland die Wissenschaftsfreiheit allein aus der Perspektive der Professor*innen betrachtet wird. Continue reading >>
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10 July 2025
Reforming the GDPR
After a surge of new digital legislation over the past two years, the European Commission appears to have no intention of easing its pace in reshaping Europe’s regulatory landscape. This includes proposals to reform the GDPR. Regulatory reforms should, however, focus on strengthening enforcement and fixing the structural problems of the GDPR, rather than merely simplifying and deregulating it. Continue reading >>
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Silencing Children’s Rights
The U.S. Supreme Court decided Mahmoud v. Taylor on June 27, 2025. In doing so, it dramatically expanded parental rights over students and education without concern for the rights of children or consideration of pedagogy and curriculum. Instead of addressing the plurality of views around sexual orientation and gender, the Court indirectly, but unsubtly, installs a traditional values framework that imposes norms of heterosexuality, religious fundamentalism and parental micromanagement of curriculum. Continue reading >>
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Judicial Acquiescence to Presidential Immigration
Mahmoud Khalil, Kilmar Ábrego García, and Rumeysa Ozturk are just a few of the people against whom the second Trump Administration has openly engaged in alarming forms of immigration enforcement. There is an underappreciated way in which the Supreme Court has defanged the judiciary’s systemic ability to confront the executive branch’s illegal immigration behavior: It has failed to draw on U.S. administrative law. In doing so, it has diminished a vital structural judicial check on presidential power – one that lower courts, and even a future Supreme Court, may find increasingly difficult to deploy. Continue reading >>
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09 July 2025
Von der Leyen Faces the Vote
On July 10, 2025, the European Parliament votes on a motion of censure against Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and her entire College of Commissioners. The pending vote against von der Leyen provides a compelling case study for examining the evolving role of the censure motion as both a legal instrument of accountability and a political tool for inter-institutional dialogue. While the motion's immediate prospects for success remain minimal, its deployment illuminates fundamental questions about democratic legitimacy, institutional loyalty, and the constitutional evolution of EU governance structures towards a post-Lisbon parliamentary democracy’s logic. Continue reading >>
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The Liberal Litigation Trap
The progressive legal movement faces a harsh reality: its reliance on federal courts has become a strategic liability in an era of conservative judicial dominance. Rather than continue on its current path or abandon impact litigation entirely, liberal cause lawyers should embrace “resistance through restraint” – tactically starving conservative appellate courts of cases while redirecting their energy toward democratic organizing, state-level advocacy, and defensive litigation. Continue reading >>Trump’s Final Frontier?
Trump nominated Emil Bove III, a former attorney of his, to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. The Bove nomination signals a turn away from the Federalist Society, the signature institution of the conservative legal movement. With it, the radical forces of the New Right movement are now making inroads into the inherently conservative judiciary. This is a development that could be a key step in consolidating Trump's power. Continue reading >>
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A Legal Scalpel Instead of an Axe
Hungary appears to be assuming the role of a Trojan horse in the European Union, advancing the interests of foreign powers. Of particular concern is Hungary’s conduct in the field of the Common Foreign and Security Policy, especially in light of its obstruction of EU sanctions against Russia. Thus far, the EU’s conventional instruments have proven insufficient in curbing Hungary’s veto strategy. For this reason, I propose a path that is both legally feasible and politically realistic: a reinterpretation of Article 7 TEU that would allow for a targeted use of the instrument. Continue reading >>
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08 July 2025
Ein Verbrechen sucht ein Gericht
Russlands Angriffskrieg gegen die Ukraine verletzt das Gewaltverbot der UN-Charta in aller Deutlichkeit, bleibt strafrechtlich allerdings bislang ungesühnt. Der Europarat und die Ukraine reagieren mit einem Sondertribunal, das hochrangige Verantwortliche für das Verbrechen der Aggression zur Rechenschaft ziehen soll – trotz politischer und verfassungsrechtlicher Hürden. Es bündelt internationale Unterstützung und setzt ein starkes Zeichen gegen Straflosigkeit bei Angriffen auf die internationale Rechtsordnung. Ein ungewöhnlicher Schritt, der das Völkerstrafrecht grundlegend herausfordert. Continue reading >>Kein SLAPP-Back
„SLAPP“ („strategic lawsuits against public participation“) meint Konstellationen, in denen gerichtliche Verfahren als Druckmittel genutzt werden, um Personen zum Schweigen zu bringen – eine Strategie, die sich in den letzten Jahren nicht zuletzt in rechten Kreisen steigender Beliebtheit erfreut. Letztes Jahr erließ die EU eine Anti-SLAPP-Richtlinie. Das Justizministerium hat für deren Umsetzung nun einen Gesetzentwurf vorgelegt, der allerdings keine allzu großen Auswirkungen haben dürfte. Das liegt einerseits an den Maßnahmen, die er den SLAPPs entgegenstellt – andererseits aber auch daran, dass diese missbräuchlichen Klagen schwer zu fassen sind. Continue reading >>
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07 July 2025
Parteiverbot gleich Mandatsverlust?
Mit den jüngsten Beschlüssen des SPD-Bundesparteitags zur Vorbereitung eines AfD-Parteiverbotsverfahrens hat die Debatte erneut an Dynamik gewonnen. Dabei rückt auch die Frage in den Fokus, was mit den Mandaten der AfD-Abgeordneten im Europäischen Parlament, im Bundestag und in den Landtagen im Falle eines Parteiverbots geschehen würde. Was nach deutschem Recht eindeutig scheint, wirft im Lichte des Völkerrechts und insbesondere der Rechtsprechung des Europäischen Gerichtshofs für Menschenrechte bisher nur selten beachtete Fragen auf. Continue reading >>04 July 2025
Die Würde der Schwangeren ist unantastbar
Nachdem in der letzten Legislatur die Entkriminalisierung des Schwangerschaftsabbruchs gescheitert war, könnte die Debatte nun wieder Auftrieb bekommen: Vor wenigen Wochen hat der Deutsche Ärztetag eine Entkriminalisierung gefordert, und auch das britische Unterhaus stimmte endlich dafür. Der aktuelle Koalitionsvertrag sieht dazu zwar konkret nichts vor. Doch der deutsche Gesetzgeber ist verpflichtet, den Schwangerschaftsabbruch neu zu regeln, weil er die Würde von Schwangeren zu achten hat – und es sich dabei um eine absolute Achtungspflicht handelt. Continue reading >>The Limits of Limiting Democracy
The intellectual and institutional architectures built around democracy are under pressure – and evolving: Germany reformed its fiscal constitution in March, Europe’s Stability and Growth Pact is undergoing a stress test, and in the United States, the White House is questioning the independence of monetary policy. Historically, democracy has an ambivalent reputation: Plato described it as both the freest and the most unstable of governments. But how far and in what ways can democracy be limited before it loses its democratic nature? Continue reading >>
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Remonstration an der Grenze
Da Innenminister Dobrindt trotz der Entscheidung des VG Berlin weiter Zurückweisungen an den deutschen Binnengrenzen durchführen lässt, könnte nunmehr ein Institut des Dienstrechts relevant werden, das lange ein „Schattendasein“ fristete: die Remonstration. Dabei geht es hier insbesondere um die Frage, ob Bundespolizist:innen verpflichtet sind, hinsichtlich der Zurückweisungen zu remonstrieren (§ 63 Abs. 2 S. 1 BBG). Die Rechtsprechung von BVerfG und BGH spricht indes eher gegen diese Pflicht. Ein Recht zur Remonstration besteht aufgrund der Zweifel an der Rechtmäßigkeit der aktuellen Praxis indes bereits jetzt. Continue reading >>03 July 2025
The Antagonistic Unity of Copyright and Freedom of the Arts
On 17 June 2025, Advocate General Emiliou delivered his opinion in the second referral of the German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) to the CJEU in the case “Pelham” – also known as “Metall auf Metall” (Case C-590/23). He defines “pastiche” – currently the most controversial concept of European copyright law – and makes a fundamental statement on EU copyright law and its relationship to freedom of the arts as guaranteed by Art. 13 CFR.The InfoSoc Directive, which is at the heart of EU copyright law, is too restrictive with regard to the artistic use of copyright-protected works and therefore not compatible with the Charter’s freedom of the arts. Emiliou’s opinion is a breakthrough. It grounds copyright in freedom of the arts and paves the way for a new perspective on the relationship between copyright and artistic freedom. Continue reading >>
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Constitutional Awakening of Values
On 5 June 2025, AG Ćapeta delivered her opinion in case C-769/22, raising a pivotal question for the EU’s constitutional future: Can Article 2 TEU serve as a standalone provision in infringement proceedings? While the issue has sparked debate – including on this blog – this post defends the Opinion as a constitutionally coherent and necessary step to safeguard the Union’s foundational values. It argues that AG Ćapeta’s approach is firmly rooted in existing case law and offers a compelling legal framework to address democratic backsliding. The post focuses on her use of the “good society” concept and the proposed “negation of values” test, examining their normative grounding and practical significance within EU law. Continue reading >>
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The Constitution’s Midnight
Resolving some legal issues requires drawing a line through a gray area. Others can be resolved without having to draw a line, in recognition of an old insight: that there is a dawn and a dusk does not mean there is no noon or no midnight. Whether the President had power under the Constitution to attack Iran without congressional approval is an issue that falls in the latter category, within the Constitution’s midnight: wherever a line might be drawn in harder cases, this is not one of them. Continue reading >>
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02 July 2025
Defining Climate Justice in the African Human Rights System
On 2 May 2025, the Pan African Lawyers Union – in collaboration with the African Climate Platform, the Environmental Lawyers Collective for Africa, Natural Justice, and resilient40 – submitted a request to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights for an advisory opinion on States’ obligations in relation to climate change. As the climate crisis intensifies across the continent, exacerbating inequality, displacing communities, and threatening ecological systems, the need for principled, coherent, and rights-based legal guidance has never been greater. In addressing this request, the Court has the chance not only to align with emerging global jurisprudence but to contribute a distinctly African vision of climate justice. Continue reading >>
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Externalising Migration Control
On 20th of May 2025, the European Court of Human Rights declared the case of S.S. and others v Italy inadmissible under Art.1 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The decision marks a missed opportunity. Instead of addressing the question of functional jurisdiction in the context of externalised migration control, the Court found that Italy does not enjoy extraterritorial jurisdiction over a group of irregular migrants whose ship was wrecked on the high seas near the Libyan coast. The ruling is another illustration of how externalised border control and “pull-back” policies are becoming normalised in Europe. Continue reading >>
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Die weiten Flügel der Demokratie
Die Welt des Non-Profit-Sektors wurde vor ein paar Tagen durch ein mittleres Erdbeben erschüttert. Medienwirksam kündigte die Petitionsplattform innn.it (ehemals Change.org) an, auf ihre Gemeinnützigkeit zu verzichten, und zwar in Reaktion auf ein Urteil des Bundesfinanzhofs. Mit den BFH-Vorgaben zur Neutralität könne man eine „Petitionsplattform mit Haltung“ nicht gemeinnützig betreiben. Nun liegen die Urteilsgründe vor: Ist der BFH in seinen Anforderungen an die Gemeinnützigkeit zu weit gegangen? Oder war es die Petitionsplattform innn.it, die eine Grenze überschritten hat? Continue reading >>Academic Freedom Mugged
The forced resignation of James Ryan from the presidency of the University of Virginia by pressure from a politically motivated U.S. Department of Justice, abetted by his opponents within the school, deals a dangerous blow to institutional academic freedom both at UVA and at every public university. Of course, universities must abide by federal civil rights laws as interpreted by courts. But Ryan’s antagonists pursue a radical reorientation of higher education away from most forms of increasing opportunities for disadvantaged students. Continue reading >>
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30 June 2025
In the End… Who Cares?
On 3 June 2025, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Justice delivered its judgment on the Kinsa-Case. At the core of the matter were the criminal charges of a third-country national for the facilitation of unauthorized entry of two minors in the territory of an EU Member State. With this ruling, the Court takes an important step towards the de-criminalization of care for migrant children who are seeking international protection. However, the Grand Chamber’s reasoning offers limited considerations on the relevant links between “actual care”, humanitarian assistance, and migrant children’s rights. This shortcoming may ultimately curb protection standards of migrant children in future cases Continue reading >>
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28 June 2025
U.S. Attacks on Iran
Israel and the United States attacked Iran in mid-June 2025 with the aim of ending its nuclear program. Iran counter-attacked. While some world leaders justified what Israel and the U.S. were doing, they did so in line with political deterrence theory, not the plain terms of the United Nations Charter. The lawful use of force in self-defense depends on an armed attack occurring. Concerns over nuclear weapons are to be resolved through treaties and negotiations. Honoring deterrence theory over the law is undermining the surest path to peace. Continue reading >>27 June 2025
Private Wealth, Public Doubt
Public officials having to disclose their private wealth is a powerful anti-corruption tool that led to the imprisonment or dismissal of hundreds of corrupt public officials across Europe. In Romania, this included ministers and a Parliamentary President. Despite this success, the Romanian Constitutional Court now substantially undermined the effectiveness of asset declarations: it declared the online publication of declarations unconstitutional and invalidated the provision on declaring wealth of adult family members of public officials. There are two reasons for other governance-reforming countries not to follow this case law. Continue reading >>Managing Migration the Italian Way II
Eight months after first exploring the legal contours of the “innovative” Italy-Albania Protocol and its temporary suspension following the Court of Rome’s refusal to validate the detention of the first group of asylum applicants transferred to Albania, this post turns to a new and potentially game-changing development: a preliminary reference to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), submitted by the Italian Court of Cassation on 20 June 2025. The referral raises doubts about the compatibility of the scheme with both the Return Directive (RD) and the Asylum Procedures Directive (APD). This move adds fresh legal uncertainty to a deal already under intense scrutiny and could significantly impact its implementation. Continue reading >>
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The European Union’s Fantastical Constitution
Recently, von Bogdandy and Spieker decided to boldly go where not even they had dared to go before. To overcome the possible Hungarian veto on prolonging EU sanctions against Russia, they propose that the explicit requirement in Article 31(1) TEU for such decisions to be taken by the Council acting unanimously should be overcome on the basis of Article 2 TEU. In their view, a Hungarian veto against further sanctions would violate the value of solidarity and the Hungarian vote should therefore not count. We argue that this would launch us into a whole new, and in our view, dangerous galaxy. Continue reading >>26 June 2025
Rethinking Transitional Justice in Sudan
The war that has plagued Sudan since 15 April 2023 is accompanied by massive violations and abuses of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Impunity with the persistence, and indeed rise, of alleged perpetrators is a key dimension of the current war. This is a fundamental challenge to its social fabric, state integrity and regional stability. As such, Sudan’s most recent transition process underlines how transitional justice can fail – and what future efforts must learn. Continue reading >>
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The Return of Golden Shares and Global Politics
The Trump Administration just announced that the Japanese steel giant Nippon Steel has granted it a powerful “golden share” in U.S. Steel as a condition for its acquisition of this major US-American steel manufacturer. While the EU has largely constrained the use of such instruments under internal market law, the US now appears willing to deploy them as symbols of industrial revival and national strength. In its response to the increasing global (geo)economic competition, the EU and its member states should resist this trend and instead refine targeted FDI screening mechanisms to reconcile national security with internal market integrity. Continue reading >>
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The Legacy of Kinsa
The CJEU’s judgment in Kinsa marks a rare rights-based correction to the EU’s punitive approach to migration. Prompted by a case from Italy, the Court confronts the criminalisation of those who cross borders caring for children. Rather than deferring to enforcement rationales, it centres fundamental rights and draws clear constitutional limits. The ruling opens a path to challenge overbroad criminalisation not just retrospectively, but at the level of legal design. In the shadow of ongoing EU reform efforts, Kinsa signals a shift: from border control to proportionality scrutiny. Continue reading >>
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25 June 2025
Nur gelbes Licht?
Das Bundesverwaltungsgericht hat das Verbot von „Compact“ nun auch im Hauptsacheverfahren aufgehoben. Auch wenn sich die Compact GmbH mit dem „Remigrationskonzept“ identifiziere, das gegen die Menschenwürde und das Demokratieprinzip verstoße, sei die Vereinigung nicht ausreichend von verfassungswidrigen Äußerungen und Aktivitäten geprägt. Für den zukünftigen Umgang mit Medienverboten ist vor allem interessant: Das Gericht bleibt zwar im Grundsatz bei seiner Position, dass das Vereinsrecht auch auf faktische Medienverbote anwendbar ist. Doch es deutet eine bedeutsame Grenze dieses Grundsatzes an. Continue reading >>Energy Sanctions Reloaded
The European Commission proposed a ban on Russian gas imports based on Article 207 TFEU – a legal basis related to the EU’s Common Commercial Policy, rather than the Common Foreign and Security Policy. Although the policy domains of trade and sanctions often overlap in practice, the new proposal seems to overlook that the EU maintains a distinct legal framework for imposing sanctions. If the ban is ultimately enacted under Article 207 TFEU, there is a risk that one or more Member States opposing these new sanctions against Russia will challenge it on the grounds that this EU Regulation is based on the wrong legal basis. Continue reading >>
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Piraterie in der Ostsee
Immer häufiger kommt es auf der Ostsee zu Sabotageakten und elektromagnetischen Signalstörungen, für die Schiffe der russischen Schattenflotte verantwortlich gemacht werden. Da sich diese Aktionen oft in internationalen Gewässern abspielen, herrscht unter manchen Rechtswissenschaftlern und Praktikern Skepsis, ob Marine und Küstenwache eingreifen können. Eine „schlafende“, aber immer noch gültige Norm des Anti-Piraterierechts bietet für die Ostsee-Anrainerstaaten allerdings sehr weitreichende Möglichkeiten, genau das zu tun. Continue reading >>24 June 2025
The Future of International Criminal Law is Domestic
Domestic courts are increasingly stepping in where international institutions falter, becoming key enforcers of international criminal law. The conviction of Syrian doctor Alaa M. in Germany exemplifies the potential of universal jurisdiction to deliver justice beyond borders. While the ICC remains blocked in the Syria situation, national trials offer credible, survivor-driven accountability. Rather than being a fallback, domestic prosecutions are emerging as a central pillar of international criminal justice. Continue reading >>From Erosion to Evisceration
Last week, the Supreme Court decided the case United States v. Skrmetti. As Ryan Thoreson has argued on this blog, the Court’s opinion rolls back existing understandings of sex discrimination in ways that will likely play out in future cases. Building on that insight, I examine how the Court narrows what counts as sex discrimination and strips the concept of stereotypes of its constitutional force. The most troubling aspects of the decision, however, appear in concurrences written by the ultraconservative members of the Court, which confine the reach of equal protection to formal legal classifications alone. Continue reading >>
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Reform ohne Wirkung
Im vergangenen Monat hat die Kommission einen Reformvorschlag zur DSGVO vorgelegt. Konkret soll Art. 30 DSGVO angepasst werden, der Datenverarbeiter verpflichtet ein sog. „Verarbeitungsverzeichnis“ zu führen. Bisher galt für Unternehmen mit weniger als 250 Beschäftigten eine Ausnahme. Künftig soll diese Grenze auf 750 Mitarbeiter angehobenen werden. Doch der Vorschlag polarisiert. Continue reading >>
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23 June 2025
The Erosion of Equal Protection
In United States v. Skrmetti, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-3 along ideological lines to uphold a Tennessee law banning gender-affirming care for minors, reaching that conclusion by construing equal protection jurisprudence in regressive ways. The majority reasoned that the law not only did not discriminate on the basis of sex, but did not discriminate on the basis of transgender status either. This post explains how the Skrmetti decision threatens to narrow the scope of constitutional equality protections in the United States, why it is dangerous for the equality claims of women and lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, and why it is likely to be so damaging for transgender people targeted by state and federal lawmakers in recent years. Continue reading >>
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Haunted by Text
Slovak PM Fico renewed his attempts to amend Slovakia’s Constitution. The most controversial provisions are a “national identity safeguard” limiting the effect of international and supranational law, and a definition of sex as strictly binary. After securing backing from some opposition members, his cabinet has submitted the amendment to parliament for debate and a vote. While public mobilisation against the proposed amendment proposal is important, legal scholars and NGOs should avoid using language that might reinforce the perception that the formally powerful Constitutional Court lacks the authority to strike down or reinterpret such changes in line with constitutional values. Continue reading >>
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