Robert Fischer (22 August 1911 – 4 March 1983) was a German jurist who served as the third President of the Federal Court of Justice of

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 ...

from 1968 to 1977, succeeding Bruno Heusinger.

Biography

Fischer was born in

Gießen Giessen, spelled Gießen in German (), is a town in the German state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of both the district of Giessen and the administrative region of Giessen. The population is approximately 90,000, with roughly 37,000 univers ...

in 1911, the son of Hans Albrecht Fischer, a professor specialising in

Roman law Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the '' Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor J ...

, Civil law and

legal philosophy Philosophy of law is a branch of philosophy that examines the nature of law and law's relationship to other systems of norms, especially ethics and political philosophy. It asks questions like "What is law?", "What are the criteria for legal val ...

. From 1932 to 1934, he studied law at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...

, where he became a part of the Academic Union “Igel” (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

for

hedgehog A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the subfamily Erinaceinae, in the eulipotyphlan family Erinaceidae. There are seventeen species of hedgehog in five genera found throughout parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand by introductio ...

), as well as at the universities of Breslau and

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...

. In 1935 he graduated while studying under the auspices of Alfred Hueck, to whom he remained connected throughout his life. After passing the second

Staatsexamen The ("state examination" or "exam by state"; pl.: ''Staatsexamina'') is a German government licensing examination that future physicians, dentists, teachers, pharmacists, food chemists, psychotherapists and jurists (i.e., lawyers, judges, publi ...

in 1938, he became a legal professional for the

Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (), sometimes referred to simply as Deutsche, is a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York St ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he served as a reserve officer. Once the war concluded in 1945, he decided to pursue a career as a

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

. Following the war's conclusion, he was appointed Director and Deputy President of the State Court in

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the capital of the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, the population was 118,911. General information The ori ...

. In 1950, he was appointed a judge at the Federal Court of Justice. After being offered a professorship at the

University of Cologne The University of Cologne (german: Universität zu Köln) is a university in Cologne, Germany. It was established in the year 1388 and is one of the most prestigious and research intensive universities in Germany. It was the sixth university to ...

, which he rejected, he became the chairman of the II. Civil Senate (

: ''II. Zivilsenat''). On 1 January 1963, he was appointed

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for ex ...

, and after President of the Federal Court of Justice Bruno Heusinger retired, Fischer was appointed his successor on 1 April 1968. He held this position until his own retirement on 30 September 1977, being succeeded by

Gerd Pfeiffer Gerd Pfeiffer (22 December 1919 – 1 February 2007) was a German jurist who served as the fourth President of the Federal Court of Justice of West Germany from 1977 to 1987. Biography In March 1937, Pfeiffer finished his Abitur and was recr ...

. Alongside his judicial activity, Fischer actively busied himself in

legal studies Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning ...

, commenting several scientific essays. He died in 1983.

Selected works

* ''Gesammelte Schriften – Grundfragen revisionsgerichtl. Rechtsprechung u. Beitr. zum Gesellschaftsrecht'', Berlin 1985, ISBN 3-11-009961-6

Bibliography

* Marcus Lutter u. a. (Hrsg.): ''Festschrift für Robert Fischer.'' Berlin 1979.

External links

*
Informationen über Robert Fischer beim Informationsdienst Wissenschaft

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fischer, Robert 1911 births 1983 deaths German jurists