Grundrechte, Spielräume und Kompetenzen

The idea that individuals hold fundamental legal positions against the state is one of humanity’s most significant achievements, which emerged during the rise of modern democratic constitutional states. Accordingly, the legitimacy of democratic constitutional states requires fundamental rights to be both protected by the applicable legal order and respected by the state in question. Nevertheless, there is not only an internal connection but also tension between democracy and constitutional rights. After all, the state must exercise its powers in accordance with their requirements. Establishing the material boundaries for state decision-making presents a major challenge to the legal profession. In this context, it is not clear how constitutional rights, state powers and legislative discretion relate to one another. This study examines this topic against the backdrop of the principles theory.