The Creation of State Constitutional Courts in Germany: When, Why, and How?

In the fourth chapter, I examine how state constitutional courts came to exist. As numerous newly established democracies established constitutional courts to safeguard the constitution and act as its guardians, many legal scholars and political scientists view constitutional courts as a response to totalitarian or authoritarian regimes. The Federal Constitutional Court serves as a prime example for this hypothesis. I will examine whether similar motives can be found in the German states and how this anti-totalitarian impulse was implemented in the establishment of state constitutional courts.