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Milestones in the Federal Constitutional Court's history
Year Selection
Ereignisse ab 1949
194924 May 1949The Basic Law enters into force
24 May 194917 April 1951The Federal Constitutional Court Act enters into force
17 April 19514 May 1951Karlsruhe becomes the seat of the Federal Constitutional Court
4 May 19517 September 1951Hermann Höpker-Aschoff becomes the first President of the Court
7 September 19519 September 1951The Court’s first decision
9 September 195128 September 1951Formal inauguration of the Court
28 September 195122 November 1951First advisory opinion
22 November 195127 June 1952Status Memorandum
27 June 195223 October 1952Prohibition of the Sozialistische Reichspartei
23 October 19521949
Ereignisse ab 1955
195517 August 1956Prohibition of the Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands
17 August 195616 January 1957Elfes judgment of the First Senate
16 January 195715 January 1958Lüth judgment of the First Senate
15 January 195829 July 1959Judgment of the First Senate on the father’s final say
29 July 19591955
Ereignisse ab 1960
196028 February 1961Television judgment of the Second Senate
28 February 19611960
Ereignisse ab 1965
19656 May 1969The Court moves to Karlsruhe’s Schlossbezirk
6 May 19691965
Ereignisse ab 1970
19701 January 1971Introducing a limit on the Justices’ term of office
1 January 19714 January 1971First dissenting opinion
4 January 197131 July 1973 Judgment of the Second Senate on the Basic Treaty
31 July 19731970
Ereignisse ab 1975
197525 February 1975Judgment of the First Senate on abortion
25 February 1975197625th anniversary of the Federal Constitutional Court
197616 October 1977Judgment of the First Senate on the abduction of Hanns Martin Schleyer
16 October 19771975
Ereignisse ab 1980
198016 February 1983Judgment of the Second Senate on the dissolution of the Bundestag following a vote of confidence
16 February 198315 December 1983Census judgment of the First Senate
15 December 19831980
Ereignisse ab 1985
198514 May 1985 Brokdorf order of the First Senate
14 May 19851985
Ereignisse ab 1990
199023/24 April 1991Judgments of the First Senate on German reunification
23/24 April 19919 April 1992Judgment of the Second Senate on party financing
9 April 199212 October 1993Maastricht judgment of the Second Senate
12 October 199312 July 1994 Judgment of the Second Senate on out-of-area deployments of the Bundeswehr
12 July 19941990
Ereignisse ab 1995
199516 May 1995Crucifix order of the First Senate
16 May 199510 October 1995Order of the First Senate concerning the statement “Soldiers are murderers”
10 October 19951996Establishment of a press office
199624 October 1996Order of the Second Senate on killings at the former inner-German border
24 October 19961995
Ereignisse ab 2000
20007 July 200150th anniversary of the Federal Constitutional Court
7 July 20018 April 2002Judgment of the Second Senate on a committee of inquiry concerning donations to political parties
8 April 200217 July 2002Judgment of the First Senate on the Act on Registered Civil Partnerships
17 July 200218 March 2003Discontinuation of proceedings for the prohibition of the Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands
18 March 20032000
Ereignisse ab 2005
200515 February 2006Judgment of the First Senate on the Aviation Security Act
15 February 20064 April 2006Profiling order of the First Senate
4 April 20067 May 2007Inauguration of the extension building
7 May 200730 June 2009Lisbon judgment of the Second Senate
30 June 20092005
Ereignisse ab 2010
20109 February 2010Judgment of the First Senate concerning benefits paid under the Second Book of the Code of Social Law (“Hartz IV”)
9 February 20104 May 2011Judgment of the Second Senate on preventive detention
4 May 201112 September 2012Judgment of the Second Senate on the European Stability Mechanism
12 September 20122010
Ereignisse ab 2015
201527 January 2015Headscarf order of the First Senate
27 January 201515 December 2015Identity Review order of the Second Senate
15 December 201521 June 2016 OMT judgment of the Second Senate
21 June 201610 October 2017Order of the First Senate on establishing a third gender category
10 October 201712 June 2018Judgment of the Second Senate regarding the prohibition of strike action for civil servants
12 June 20186 November 2019 Order of the First Senate “Right to be forgotten I”
6 November 20196 November 2019Order of the First Senate “Right to be forgotten II”
6 November 20192015
Ereignisse ab 2020
202026 February 2020 Judgment of the Second Senate concerning the criminalisation of assisted suicide services
26 February 20205 May 2020Judgment of the Second Senate on the Public Sector Purchase Programme
5 May 20201 December 2020Order of the Second Senate regarding European arrest warrants (Romania II)
1 December 20202020
Ereignisse ab 2021
202124 March 2021Order of the First Senate concerning the Federal Climate Change Act
24 March 202128 September 2021Celebrating 70 years of constitutional justice
28 September 202119 November 2021Order of the First Senate Federal pandemic emergency brake I
19 November 202119 November 2021Order of the First Senate Federal pandemic emergency brake II
19 November 20212021
Ereignisse ab 2022
202221 July 2022Order of the First Senate on the obligation to provide proof of measles vaccination
21 July 20226 December 2022Judgment of the Second Senate on the Act Ratifying the EU Own Resources Decision
6 December 202214 December 2022Judgment of the Second Senate on the parliamentary right of inquiry regarding staff posted abroad by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
14 December 20222022