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 West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

from 1977 to 1987.

Biography

In March 1937, Pfeiffer finished his

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

and was recruited into the

Reich Labour Service The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major paramilitary organization established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate ...

(

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Reichsarbeitsdienst'', abbr. RAD) in Breslau. From 1937 onwards he completed his mandatory service in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

. After the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1939, he served in the '' Heer'' until 1945. He was wounded five times. After the war ended, he studied law at the

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

from 1945 to 1948. In 1948, he was promoted to Dr. iur. by the university faculty. After passing the second

Staatsexamen The ("state examination" or "exam by state"; pl.: ''Staatsexamina'') is a German government licensing examination that future physicians, dentists, physical therapists, teachers, research librarians, archivists, pharmacists, food chemists, psyc ...

in 1951, he entered into judicial service in

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

. Following that, he served as a scientific employee at the

Federal Constitutional Court The Federal Constitutional Court ( ; abbreviated: ) is the supreme constitutional court for the Federal Republic of Germany, established by the constitution or Basic Law () of Germany. Since its inception with the beginning of the post-W ...

(

: ''Bundesverfassungsgericht'', abbr. BVG) from 1952 to 1958, being promoted to judge at the Landgericht München I and later at the Supreme District Court in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. On 7 April 1966, Pfeiffer was appointed Federal Judge. He was delegated the I. Punitive Senate of the Federal Court of Justice, becoming president of that senate on 5 March 1970. On 3 November 1976, he was appointed the Vice President of the Federal Court of Justice, and less than a year later, on 1 October 1977, he was appointed the court's President, succeeding Robert Fischer. Additionally, he became the chairman of the Cartel Senate of the court. In 1979, he was named the speaker of a celebration for the centenary of the Reich Court (

: ''Reichsgericht''), where he gained notoriety for successfully defending the conservative tradition of the court before

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

, while at the same time denouncing Nazi excesses committed through the

judicial system The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

and describing the changes to the legal system since 1945.''Der Spiegel.'' Heft 7, 2007 For his judicial competency and determination, he became well-respected as an expert in criminal law. Using his abilities as the head of the Ethics Commission of

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Its built-up area has a population of abou ...

, as well as the chairman of the scientific council of the exposition "Justice and National Socialism" (

: ''Justiz und Nationalsozialismus'') in 1989. He opposed the toughening-up of existing criminal law in a way he believed to be disproportionate. Additionally, he opposed the policy on turn state's evidence pursued by the then-Federal Minister of the Interior

Friedrich Zimmermann Friedrich Zimmermann (18 July 1925 – 16 September 2012) was a German politician and a member of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria, Christian Social Union (CSU). From 1982 to 1989, he was the federal minister of interior. From 1989 to 1991 h ...

. During his tenure, Pfeiffer published, among other things, the Karlsruhe Commentary to the Code of Criminal Procedure (

: ''Karlsruher Kommentar zur Strafprozeßordnung''). He retired on 31 December 1987 from his position as President of the Federal Court of Justice. He was succeeded by Walter Odersky. He was the first member of the

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together w ...

(SPD) to become president of that court. From 1988 to 1993, he was the Chairman of the Supportive Association for the Legal History Museum (

: ''Trägervereins für das Rechtshistorische Museum'') in Karlsruhe.

Honours

Federal Cross of Merit The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

* Bavarian Cross of Merit * Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold with Sash of Austria * Grand Cross of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republi ...

* Badge of Honour of the German Advocacy *

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

Bibliography

* Klaus Tiedemann, Otto-Friedrich Freiherr von Gamm, Peter Raisch: ''Strafrecht, Unternehmensrecht, Anwaltsrecht.'' Festschrift für Gerd Pfeiffer. Zum Abschied aus dem Amt als Präsident des Bundesgerichtshofes. Heymann, Köln u. a. 1988, ISBN 3-452-20938-5. * Thomas Fischer: ''Gerd Pfeiffer † 1. Februar 2007.'' Nachruf. In: ''Journal der Juristischen Zeitgeschichte.'' 1. Jahrgang, Heft 3, 2007, , S. 101–103.

External links

*
''Prof. Dr. Gerd Pfeiffer wird 85 Jahre alt''

''Ex-BGH-Präsident Pfeiffer ist tot''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pfeiffer, Gerd 1919 births 2007 deaths Judges of the Federal Court of Justice