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The Constitutional Court (German: Verfassungsgerichtshof, VfGH), is one of three judicial bodies charged with final appellate jurisdiction in Austria.
Contents
History
The VfGH was established in 1920 and is one of the oldest constitutional courts in the world. The VfGH was the successor to the older Imperial Law Court.
Jurisdiction and relationship with other highest Austrian courts
The Constitutional Court deals with constitutional law, while the Administrative Court deals with public law, and the Supreme Court of Justice (Oberster Gerichtshof, OGH) with civil and criminal matters. These three courts are hierarchically on the same level, with no superiority or subordination between them, "except in certain procedural contexts... where the Constitutions Court finds itself in a superior position vis-à-vis the Supreme Court and the Supreme Administrative Court, notably regarding the Constitutional Court's exclusive competence on rescinding general norms by declaring laws unconstitutional and ordinances contrary to law...; on deciding conflicts between the highest courts, calculating the Constitutional Court itself ...; and on deciding on State liability claims in regard to decisions of the highest courts, calculating the Constitutional Court itself."
Because the right of parties to appeal to the Constitutional Court is limited and review of most cases (even those involving Austrian constitutional law) is done by the Supreme Court of Justice, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is important in deciding many Austrian cases involving fundamental rights.
Judges
The Constitutional Court consists of twenty judges: a president, a vice president, twelve other judges, and six substitute judges.
The president and vice president of the court, as well as half of the further members and substitute judges, are appointed by the president of Austria. The remainder of the court are appointed by the president from a list (consisting of three times of the number of available positions) submitted by the bicameral Austrian Parliament, with the National Council (Nationalrat) suggesting three members and two substitutes and the Federal Council (Bundesrat) suggesting three members and one substitute. By convention, candidates are effectively selected by each of the two main political parties—the SPÖ and the ÖVP—maintaining "a rough political balance" on the court. Historically, university professors made up most of the members of the court, but today the majority of the court were formerly practicing attorneys.
To be eligible for appointment, a prospective judge must have ten years of legal expedience. A member of the court cannot serve simultaneously as a member of parliament or government official in either the federal government or a state (Bundesland) government, or as an employee or functionary of a political party.
The judges of the Constitutional Court serve for life but judges must retire at the end of the year in which they turn 70 years old.