Gerhard Schröder's bid to reclaim office rejected by court
Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder has again lost his court battle to retain his office in the Bundestag. The Federal Administrative Court dismissed his lawsuit, citing the constitutional nature of the dispute.
What do you need to know?
- When and where? On Thursday, the Federal Administrative Court in Germany dismissed Gerhard Schröder’s lawsuit regarding the retention of his office in the Bundestag.
- Why? The court found that the issue is constitutional and can only be resolved by the Federal Constitutional Court.
- What's next? Schröder has already lost in two previous instances, and the Bundestag's budget committee revoked his right to the office in 2022.
The Bundestag budget committee decided in 2022 that since Schröder does not fulfil the duties of a former chancellor, he does not deserve a publicly funded office along with staff.
Although criticism of Schröder for his ties with Russian leader Vladimir Putin was not explicitly mentioned as a reason, there were discussions about the consequences "in connection with the Russian attack".
Criticism of Schröder and contacts with the Kremlin
Following Russia's aggression against Ukraine, Schröder, who led the German government from 1998 to 2005, faced a significant wave of criticism for his contacts with Russian authorities, particularly for his friendship with Putin and his work in Russian state-owned companies like Nord Stream, Gazprom, and Rosneft.
Schröder filed a lawsuit against the Bundestag in August 2022, arguing that the budget committee’s decision was unlawful. His lawyer, Michael Nagel, claimed that the influence on the committee's decision was "blatantly different from the reasons specified in the regulations".
