Federal Administrative Court (Germany) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Federal Administrative Court |
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| Bundesverwaltungsgericht | |
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The court building, which used to be the Imperial Court of Justice.
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| Established | 1952 |
| Location | Leipzig, Saxony, Germany |
| Authorized by | Basic Law of Germany |
| President of the Federal Administrative Court | |
| Currently | Andreas Korbmacher |
The Federal Administrative Court (in German: Bundesverwaltungsgericht, or BVerwG) is one of Germany's five most important courts, known as federal supreme courts. Its main job is to handle cases about administrative law. This usually means it settles disagreements between regular citizens and the government.
Think of it as the final referee. If someone has a legal problem with a government decision, they first go to a local administrative court (Verwaltungsgericht). If they don't agree with that court's decision, they can appeal to a higher court (Oberverwaltungsgericht). The Federal Administrative Court is the last stop for these kinds of cases.
However, this court doesn't handle every type of case. Special courts deal with other issues:
- Disagreements about social security benefits go to the Social Courts, with the Bundessozialgericht as the highest court.
- Cases about taxes and customs fees are handled by the Fiscal Courts, with the Bundesfinanzhof as the final court of appeal.
The Federal Administrative Court is located in a grand, historic building in the city of Leipzig. This building was once home to the Reichsgericht, which was the highest court in Germany during the time of the German Empire.
History of the Court
Founding After World War II
The Federal Administrative Court was created in 1952. Its creation was based on Germany's new constitution, the Basic Law. At first, the court was located in Berlin. It was housed in the same building that the old Prussian Higher Administrative Court used.
The choice of Berlin was a bit controversial. After World War II, Germany was watched over by the Allied Powers (the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union). The Soviet Union was not happy about such an important court being in Berlin. Because of this disagreement, some of the court's judges, who handled military cases, had to move to Munich.
Moving to Leipzig
In 1997, a law was passed to move the court to a new city: Leipzig. The official move happened on August 26, 2002.
This move was a big deal because the court took over the famous Reichsgericht building. A special ceremony was held on September 12, 2002, to officially open the building as the new home of the Federal Administrative Court. Today, all of the court's judges, including those who were in Munich, work together in Leipzig.
External links
- Official homepage: http://www.bverwg.de/
