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East Germany Judiciary
Like all other aspects of the government administration of
East Germany, the party is the ultimate decision maker in the
operation of the legal system. The Constitution, however,
provides for the right of citizens to a voice in the judicial
process and the selection of judges, directly or through their
elected representatives. It further provides for citizen
participation in the administration of justice in an effort to
deter crime. Basic guarantees for justice are said to derive from
the "socialist society, the political power of the working
people, and their state and legal system."
In fact, separation of powers does not exist in the East
German government. Although the Constitution asserts the
independence of the courts, it also subordinates the judiciary to
the political authorities and their political goals. Judgeships
are restricted to communists of proven loyalty. The regime
officially considers law and justice the tools for building a
communist society and declares it the duty of all judicial and
legal officers to serve this end. In effect, legal and judicial
organs serve as agencies for promoting official doctrine, and the
careers of personnel in the system are dependent on their
political ratings as determined by higher state and party
officials.
At the top of East Germany's legal system are the Ministry of
Justice, the Supreme Court, and the Office of the General
Prosecuting Attorney (public prosecutor). In 1987 the heads of
these offices were, respectively, Hans-Joachim Heusinger (LDPD),
Heinrich Toeplitz (CDU), and Josef Streit (SED). The public
prosecutor appoints prosecutors throughout East Germany,
including those active in military courts; he can dismiss them,
and they are "responsible to him and bound by his instructions."
The Office of the General Prosecuting Attorney is also
responsible for supervising "strict adherence to socialist
legality and protecting citizens from violations of the law." The
role of the Ministry of Justice, which is not mentioned in the
Constitution, appears to be largely formal and propagandistic.
The organs of justice are the Supreme Court, regional courts,
district courts, and social courts. Military jurisdiction is
exercised by the Supreme Court and military tribunals and courts.
The specific areas of responsibility for each level of the court
system are defined by law. Professional and lay judges of the
courts are elected for five years by corresponding representative
bodies, except district court judges, who are elected directly by
the citizenry. They are subject to dismissal for malfeasance and
for violations of law and the Constitution in the performance of
their duties.
Under the Constitution, the Supreme Court, as the highest
organ of the legal system, directs the jurisdiction of all lower
courts and is charged with ensuring the uniform application of
the law on all levels. The highest court not only has the right
of extraordinary appeal as a measure of control over the lower
courts but on occasion serves as a link in the chain of command
by issuing general legal directives. According to Article 93 of
the Constitution, the Supreme Court "directs the jurisdiction of
the courts on the basis of the Constitution, the laws, and their
statutory regulations. . . . It ensures a uniform application of
the law by all courts." The directive function of the Supreme
Court goes far beyond that of supreme courts in Western systems,
which as a rule do not give legally binding instructions to the
lower courts concerning specific questions of law. The Supreme
Court is responsible to the People's Chamber and, between the
latter's sessions, to the Council of State. Internally, the
organization of the high court consists of an assembly, a
presidium, and three functional administrative divisions known as
collegiums for criminal justice, military justice, and civil,
family, and labor law. The assembly, which is directed in its
plenary sessions by the Supreme Court Presidium, consists of
fifteen directors of the district courts, the chairmen of the
higher military courts, and all professional judges.
Each district court is presided over by a professional judge
and two jurors in cases of original jurisdiction and by three
professional judges in cases of appellate jurisdiction. The
district courts have appellate jurisdiction in civil cases and
original jurisdiction in major criminal cases such as economic
crimes, murder, and crimes against the state.
The county court is the lowest level of the judiciary system,
and each of the country's counties has at least one such court,
which is presided over by a professional judge and two lay
assessors. The majority of all criminal and civil cases are tried
at this level; county courts have jurisdiction over cases not
assigned elsewhere and civil cases involving only small amounts
of property.
In addition to the regular law courts, East Germany has also
developed an extensive system of community and social courts
(Gesellschaftliche Gerichte), known as either conflict or
arbitration commissions (Konflikt und
Schiedskommissionen). The first are formed in state-owned and
private enterprises, health and educational institutions,
offices, and social organizations. The second are established in
residential areas, collective farms, and cooperatives of manual
laborers, fishermen, and gardeners. Created to relieve the
regular courts of their minor civil or criminal case loads, the
jurisdiction of the courts applies to labor disputes, minor
breaches of the peace, misdemeanors, infringements of the law,
truancy, and conflicts in civil law. These courts are composed of
lay jurors who are elected by their respective constituencies.
Party officials at the community level generally influence the
nomination of jurors to the community courts and exercise
considerable influence on the outcome of cases heard at this
level.
Data as of July 1987
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