Justice - OLG Frankfurt: Many tasks and challenges
The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Frankfurt looks back on a "busy and unusual year" according to its own statements - and dares a prediction for the current year. "We have pushed many large projects and themes in 2023 - besides the core business", said OLG President Alexander Seitz during a balance press conference.
First and foremost, the restructuring of the judicial district in the Frankfurt city center is an important topic. "Five administrative departments of the OLG with a total of 74 employees and staff have moved into a office building in Niederrad since January 2024", explained Vice President Ruth Roemer. A building of the OLG is then to be demolished from July 8. It is calculated that about 30 truckloads of debris will be transported away per day. By 2027, a new building with 2,500 square meters of usable area is to be built.
Decade-long Mega Construction Site
The modernization of the largest judicial site in Hesse in Frankfurt will take about 12 years and cost several hundred million euros in total. In the judicial district at the Konstablerwache, two new buildings are to be built in the coming years, as well as most of the buildings to be sanitized and modernized. Not only the OLG, but also the District and Regional Courts and the Public Prosecutor's Office are affected.
The labor shortage also concerns the OLG. Seitz stated that there are sufficient applicants for judge positions. However, in the non-judicial area, we will have to make up for it in the coming years. Vice President Roemer explained that the applicant situation has significantly worsened. We are constantly looking for young people who are interested in justice. "That basically starts in school, we also work with school newspapers." The OLG is also advertising on various social media platforms. This is also a preparatory measure for the retirement of the baby boomers in the coming years.
Terror trials consume resources
The two state protection senates of the OLG are, according to Seitz, heavily loaded - and the trend is rising. The burden of the two state protection senates is again at a record high, he explained. Both senates therefore conducted 164 main hearings in 2023. In previous years, this number was 130 or 95 sitting days. And the burden remains high: In the first half of 2024, there were 54 hearing days.
The proceedings against the alleged "Reichsbuerger" group around Heinrich XIII. Prince Reuss also play a major role for the court. Seitz referred to the large administrative tasks that came to the court in the context of the proceedings in the past year: among other things, the newly built light construction hall in the district of Sossenheim and around 400,000 pages of case files.
The proceedings in Sossenheim are also currently a "giant power play", he said. Forty to forty-five watchmen from all of Hesse are in use at each hearing day. So far, there have been 12 hearing days - the process is currently scheduled until mid-January 2025. And there will not be fewer such proceedings: "The trend is rather going in that direction, that there will be more in this area", said Seitz.
Case load at constant high level
In the core business, the OLG is doing well and is moving on a similarly high level as in previous years. The majority consisted of civil proceedings, which, however, decreased from 5,648 to 5,436 cases in the past year. "The value should approximately remain stable until 2024," it was stated. In the criminal law field, the number increased slightly from 262 to 269 cases - the forecast for 2024 was 300.
Family proceedings also decreased slightly to 1,581 (2022: 1,704). Romer was pleased that the average duration of proceedings for family matters had dropped below six months for the first time in more than ten years. Matters under family law include custody and maintenance disputes.
Mass proceedings, such as those in connection with the Diesel scandal, also decreased. However, there were significantly more proceedings in connection with violations of the General Data Protection Regulation, according to Seitz.
- The 'State Protection Senate' of the OLG Frankfurt is currently facing a 'skills shortage' in the non-judicial area, and they are actively seeking young individuals interested in justice, starting from school level and utilizing social media platforms for recruitment.
- The 'Public prosecutor's office' in Frankfurt am Main is also part of the extensive modernization project at the Konstablerwache judicial district, which is expected to cost several hundred million euros and take about 12 years to complete.
- The 'Higher Regional Court' (OLG) Frankfurt witnessed a 'record high' case load in its state protection senates in 2023, with 164 main hearings conducted, a significant increase from previous years.
- The 'Justice' sector in Hesse, including the OLG, District and Regional Courts, and Public Prosecutor's Office, are collectively dealing with a 'skills shortage', leading to plans for future recruitment initiatives and preparations for the retirement of the baby boomers.
