Five things you may not have known about the Federal Constitutional Court

The Federal Constitutional Court has been monitoring compliance with the Basic Law for 75 years. Citizens can turn to “Karlsruhe” if they believe their constitutional rights have been violated. The court also decides in disputes between political actors - for example if parliamentary groups or individual MPs disagree with the federal government. Five things you may not have known about Germany's highest court:

1. The court is not subordinate to any ministry

The Federal Constitutional Court is not only the highest court in Germany, but also one of the five constitutional bodies of the Federal Republic. As such, unlike the specialized courts, it is not subordinate to a ministry. The 16 judges, who are divided into two senates, make fundamental organizational decisions themselves. The administration is headed by Court President Stephan Harbarth. In total, around 270 people are employed by the Federal Constitutional Court.

2. The red robes are passed on

When a verdict is announced at the Federal Constitutional Court, it is done by judges in scarlet robes, with berets on their heads and white jabots around their necks. The official costume is a trademark of the court. It does not belong to the constitutional judges themselves, but is passed on from judge to judge. A seamstress from Karlsruhe repairs the satin robes if necessary and adapts them to the new wearer when there are staff changes in the Senate.

3. Local separation of justice and politics

In 1951, the law governing the seat of the Federal Constitutional Court stipulated that it was “initially in Karlsruhe”. This was primarily for practical reasons: the Federal Court of Justice had already been sitting there for around a year at the time. It was thought that the courts could share an administration or a library. In addition, a third of the judges at the Federal Constitutional Court must be federal judges - the proximity to the largest federal court was an advantage. It is a long tradition that the highest courts are not located in the capital. The judiciary should be spatially separated from the center of political power.

4. The first decision was about Baden-Württemberg

The very first decision was made by the Federal Constitutional Court on September 9, 1951. In an expedited procedure, the Second Senate ordered that the referendum on the establishment of a southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, scheduled for September 16, must take place later. The judges needed more time to examine the legal situation beforehand. In the end, the court gave the green light: the vote was rescheduled in December 1951 - with the result that Baden-Württemberg was created.

5. Only around 1.5 percent of constitutional lawsuits are successful

The vast majority of proceedings that come to the Federal Constitutional Court are so-called constitutional complaints - in 2025, they made up around 96 percent of the proceedings with 4,722. Citizens in particular can turn to the court with a constitutional complaint if they believe their fundamental rights have been violated. However, the complaints are very rarely successful: the average success rate over the last ten years is 1.48 percent. As a rule, the court does not find a violation of the constitution.