Doris König, Justice of the Second Senate of Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), will discuss the challenges the country’s highest court navigates within the European Union’s legal landscape. In its role as the “guardian of the constitution” and interpreter of the Basic Law (Grundgesetz), the court has been balancing its responsibilities to Germany’s citizens with the European Union’s mission to protect fundamental and human rights across Europe. As the FCC addresses challenges to its jurisdiction, it has needed to reach compromises with or, at times, waived its rights to legal entities such as the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg. In highlighting examples, König will address key questions: What does being part of a jurisdictional triangle mean for the competences of national constitutional courts in Europe? Will they lose their important role in the protection of fundamental rights?
This event is made possible by the John F. Kennedy Memorial Fellowship.
