Directorate‑General for Policy Management and Communication (L)

This is where the Federal Justice Minister’s daily work is prepared and cooperation between government and parliament is coordinated. This directorate‑general comprises the Minister’s office, the parliament and cabinet division and the policy planning and protocol divisions, and also coordinates all media relations. Here, press spokespersons act as a point of contact for the media, the citizens' dialogue division responds to all questions submitted by the public, and the Ministry also has its own media channels where it provides readers with up‑to‑date information.

Directorate‑General for Administration (Z)

From computers to recruitment, from the library to finances: Directorate‑General Z (administration) is responsible for all practical issues that are important for the Ministry’s daily work. It has the task of establishing the staffing, organisational, budgetary and infrastructural conditions for the work of the Ministry and of the federal courts and authorities within the remit of the Federal Ministry of Justice.

Directorate‑General for the Judicial System (R)

Directorate‑General R’s sphere of responsibility includes the procedural rules for civil, criminal, administrative and finance court proceedings and regulations on the organisation and competence of the courts. It is also responsible for the law governing the legal professions, in particular relating to judges, public prosecutors, attorneys‑at‑law and notaries, for legal training and for the law relating to Rechtspfleger (senior judicial officers).

The directorate‑general’s responsibilities also include provisions on the law governing court costs and the law governing lawyer’s fees, extra judicial conflict resolution and insolvency law.

Directorate‑General for Civil Law (I)

The work in Directorate‑General I centres on civil law, which governs the legal framework for private legal relationships between citizens. The core of German civil law has been laid down in just under 2,400 sections of the Civil Code (Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, BGB). These sections deal with a wide range of matters such as legal capacity, landlord and tenant law, family law and succession law, including for example the law governing marriage, regulations on custody and rights of access and provisions on wills. The legislative process in the European Union, to which Directorate‑General I contributes, is playing an increasingly important role in civil law as well. Directorate‑General I is also responsible for performing the legal scrutiny of all draft legislation of the other federal ministries when this contains provisions touching on civil law.

Directorate‑General for Criminal Law (II)

Directorate‑General II deals with the norms in our legal system which proscribe certain acts and make them subject to penalty or a fine. This encompasses crimes such as homicide offences, robbery, theft and insult, as well as offences that penalise attacks against the security of the Federal Republic of Germany such as high treason or membership of a terrorist organisation, and certain economic crimes. The Directorate‑General for Criminal Law also comprises divisions that are responsible for the consequences of criminal law, for example where compensation is sought. It also deals with ways of preventing crime.

The influence of the European Union on national criminal law is constantly growing. Criminal activity itself is taking on an increasingly international dimension and its prosecution is moving in the same direction. This is why a number of legal instruments have already been developed within the European Union to facilitate the cross‑border fight against crime, one example being the European arrest warrant.

Directorate‑General for Commercial and Economic Law (III)

More than any other directorate‑general, the remit of Directorate‑General III is anchored in and determined by international developments. This is why a major focus of Directorate‑General III is on participating in the legislative work of the European Union and the work of the European Union Intellectual Property Office, the European Patent Organisation as well as the United Nations and its specialised agencies (WIPO, IMO, UNCITRAL).

In recent years, the work in Directorate‑General III focussed, in particular, on large reform projects relating to company law (Limited Liability Companies Act, Stock Corporation Act, Trade and Industrial Cooperative Societies Act), the modernisation of accounting law and patent law, as well as the amendment of insurance contract law, copyright law and the law governing unfair competition. Directorate‑General III is also responsible for performing the scrutiny of draft legislation of other federal ministries in the fields of economic law, e.g. energy law, foreign trade law, tax law, trade law, cartel law and telecommunications and media law.

Directorate‑General for Public Law (IV)

One focus of Directorate‑General IV’s activities is the scrutiny of legal provisions. This means it examines all draft legislation in terms of conformity with constitutional law and compatibility with EU and international law.

In the fields of international law and European law, Directorate‑General IV is responsible for the legal scrutiny of proposed legal instruments under international law and the law of the European Union in which the Federal Republic of Germany is involved. It also takes a drafting role and carries out scrutiny of legislation to be transposed into domestic law. It is involved in the drafting and negotiation of international treaties and plays an active role in implementing, developing and extending the cooperation within the European Union in the fields of Justice and Home Affairs.

Directorate‑General for Better Regulation; Digital Society and Innovation; European Affairs and International Cooperation (D)

Directorate‑General D deals with cross‑sectoral issues surrounding better regulation, as the law should be simple, comprehensible and effective. Its remit also encompasses legal aspects of digital transformation since issues relating to digitalisation impact on all areas of life – including our legal system.

In the field of “better regulation and bureaucracy reduction”, a dedicated unit coordinates the corresponding activities of the Federal Government, working together with all of the federal ministries to make the law more fit for practice, more effective and more user‑oriented. In the area of digital society and innovation, Directorate‑General D plays a part in shaping the national, European and international framework conditions for the use of innovative digital tools and technologies, including artificial intelligence applications, as well as for data and technological sovereignty. In particular, this involves exploring, evaluating and advancing options for further digitalisation of legal services and of the judicial system at federal and Land level. The challenges posed by European and international cooperation have become ever greater over the past years. EU projects are constantly growing in number, scope and significance, and increasingly require the deliberation and coordination of fundamental policy decisions. Furthermore, international justice policy outside the EU is also becoming increasingly important due to global interdependencies, political upheavals and the intensifying competition between the various legal systems. Directorate‑General D coordinates the EU’s justice policy to achieve common objectives in this area while ensuring consistency in how these activities are perceived. To this end, a unit was established with a specific focus on international legal cooperation.