State Constitutional Courts and Judicialization of Politics in the German Länder

In my Paper I will examine degree and causes of judicialization of politics in the German states. The questions tackled with in my paper are, hence, twofold. On the one hand, it will be investigated whether and to what extent decisions of German subnational constitutional courts impacted on the scope for action of subnational parliaments. The effect of constitutional rulings and decisions is measured with a "strength index" that captures the possible impact supreme court rulings might have had on legislation. In this respect, the project addresses a central theme of constitutional democracies: the tension between political self-determination and constitutional review. On the other hand, it is assumed that dimensions and degree of judicialization in the German Länder depend on institutional and personal factors, that is, on the competencies and the composition of the respective constitutional court. The project thus combines actor-centered and institutional-theoretical approaches to find answers to the research questions at hand.