Legal decision

Federal Constitutional Court ruling on Bavarian secession, 2016

The German Federal Constitutional Court rejected a petition for a referendum on Bavarian independence, ruling that German states cannot secede.

What happened

A private individual petitioned the Federal Constitutional Court to permit a Brexit-style referendum on whether Bavaria should secede from Germany.[1] The Court rejected the petition in a decision of 16 December 2016, released on 3 January 2017, holding that Germany's Basic Law does not permit individual states to secede and that German states "are not 'masters of the constitution.'"[2]

Sources for this page

Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.

  1. 1.

    Claim: A private individual petitioned the German Federal Constitutional Court to permit a Brexit-style referendum on whether Bavaria should secede from Germany.

    • Bavaria must remain part of Germany, says top court (The Local (Germany), 3 January 2017) link, article text. Source record
  2. 2.

    Claim: The Federal Constitutional Court rejected the petition in a decision of 16 December 2016, released on 3 January 2017, holding that Germany's Basic Law does not permit individual states to secede and that German states "are not 'masters of the constitution.'"

    • Bavaria must remain part of Germany, says top court (The Local (Germany), 3 January 2017) link, article text. Source record

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