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Online seminar for Middle Eastern lawyers on administrative law

Published: May 3, 2023

On 12 April 2023, the IRZ organised an online seminar for lawyers from the Middle East to discuss administrative and administrative court procedure law, which was funded by the Federal Ministry of Justice. The event was the first part of a two-day series of seminars on citizenship law, naturalisation procedures and related legal remedies.

As part of the funding programme for the long-term support of young legal professionals in the Middle East, the participants learned about the basics of administrative law and administrative court procedure law and expanded their knowledge in the selected topics. Knowledge of general administrative law and court procedure law is of great importance for the target group.

The series of seminars specifically addressed these issues, as topics relevant to migration law such as nationality, residence and asylum law and general administrative and administrative court procedure law are particularly relevant for the participants. The event also explored the basics and principles of administration and the related procedures, which are also included in general administrative law.

The expert from the IRZ, Eva Wiglinksi, Judge at the Minden Administrative Court, explained the basics of general administrative law to the participants and the important types of lawsuits. The following topics were discussed in detail:

• Forms of administrative action, the administrative act and the notification of such
• The differentiation between facts and legal consequences of a norm
• Bound decisions, discretionary decisions
• The lawful exercise of discretionary decisions and the extent of judicial control
• Legal protection with respect to administrative acts; legal challenges and actions for performance (in particular in the form of the action for a failure to act)
• The costs of the procedure in the administrative court process

The prospective lawyers can apply the knowledge they have acquired in their professional practice and therefore expand their opportunities on the job market.

The event was attended by 20 participants from Syria, Egypt and Iraq, among others. The group included people who had completed a law degree in their own countries, and were working in the legal professions, and those who had studied at German universities or completed a master’s degree (LL.M).

The complex content and theoretical explanations were studied using case studies relevant to practice, the participants solved a theoretical case together and with the support of the expert and were therefore able to apply their newly acquired knowledge in practice.

They used the discussion rounds between the topic blocks to explore technical questions and thus clearly demonstrated their great interest in the topic. The participants asked and examined numerous questions and shared personal experiences with the group, in particular concerning the asylum procedure, the naturalisation procedure and legal protection options.

The second part of the series of seminars is planned for the end of May 2023, in which the participants will explore the specific topic of citizenship law.