Supreme Judicial Authority The headline could be rephrased as: Court of Higher Administration: Judicial Authorities - Courtroom face-off: Ex-Chancellor Schröder involved in conflict
Ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schroder (SPD) made an appearance in court on Thursday, relating to his previous office in the German parliament. The Berlin-Brandenburg Administrative Court is handling the case orally. Schroder, aged 80, desires that the Bundestag continues to provide for his office, including space and personnel. He failed to win the case in the initial stage in May 2023.
Schroder, 80, turned up at the courtroom roughly ten minutes before the commencement of the session, accompanied by his spouse Soyeon Schroder-Kim, and bid farewell to his attorneys.
Schroder served as Chancellor from 1998 to 2005 and held the position of SPD Chairman from 1999 to 2004. In May 2022, the Budget Committee determined to discontinue his office in the Bundestag. The reason provided was that the former Chancellor no longer takes on any obligations within his previous role duties.
The Administrative Court dismissed Schroder's lawsuit against this decision, causing the office to be terminated. As per the verdict, the former Chancellor has no right to the allocation of space to fulfill commitments associated with his former position. Schroder subsequently appealed the ruling.
The coalition government, consisting of SPD, Greens, and FDP, established regulations on the allocation of office spaces for former federal chancellors in the spring of 2022. Presently, the continuation of such payment is contingent upon former politicians still assuming responsibilities associated with their previous roles, for instance, acquiring patronships and imparting speeches. Earlier, Schroder had faced critical remarks for his influential relationships with Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, even within his own party. In the Budget Committee's resolution, Schroder's connections to Russian enterprises or Putin were omitted.
Press release VG Berlin, dated 4th of May, 2023.
