Karl Korinek

Karl Korinek (7 December 1940 – 9 March 2017) was an Austrian constitutional scholar and educator. Korinek taught law at the University of Graz, the Vienna University of Economics and Business, the University of Vienna, and the Danube University Krems. In 1978, Korinek was appointed to the Austrian Constitutional Court; he served as the president of the court from 2003 until his retirement in 2008.

Karl Korinek
President of the Constitutional Court
In office
1 January 2003 – 30 April 2008
Vice PresidentBrigitte Bierlein
Preceded byLudwig Adamovich Jr.
Succeeded byGerhart Holzinger
Vice President of the Constitutional Court
In office
1 January 1999 – 31 December 2002
PresidentLudwig Adamovich Jr.
Preceded byKarl Piska
Succeeded byBrigitte Bierlein
Personal details
Born(1940-12-07)7 December 1940
Vienna
Died9 March 2017(2017-03-09) (aged 76)
Vienna
Political partyAustrian People's Party
Children2
MotherViktoria Korinek
FatherFranz Korinek
Alma materUniversity of Vienna

Although a member of the Austrian People's Party and an outspoken conservative in private life, Korinek was considered non-partisan in his jurisprudence. He clashed with Wolfgang Schüssel on health care and immigration reform and with Jörg Haider on minority protection matters; he received praise from political opponents for his firm stance on human rights issues in general. Korinek has authored several books and more than 250 scholarly papers. Respected across party boundaries, he is widely regarded as one of the most influential legal scholars in recent Austrian history.

Early life

Karl Korinek was born on 12 December 1940 in Vienna as the son of Franz Korinek, a lawyer and future politician, and his wife Viktoria.[1][2]

Korinek grew up Catholic. The family was conservative; Korinek's father joined the Austrian People's Party after the end of World War II and went on to become General Secretary of the Austrian Economic Chamber, the national entrepreneurs' and industrialists' advocacy group; he later also served as the minister of finance for a term.[2][3]

Korinek received his secondary education at the Gymnasium Mariahilf, a school with special emphasis on the classical humanities.[2]

Career

Following his graduation from the gymnasium in 1958, Korinek enrolled at the University of Vienna to study law, receiving his doctorate in 1963. He spent the next year working as a trainee at various Viennese courts. In 1964, he went to work as an in-house legal consultant for the Austrian Economic Chamber. In addition to his day job in the bureaucracy, Korinek continued to pursue an academic career. In 1970, he submitted his habilitation thesis to the Faculty of Legal and Political Science (German: Rechts- und Staatswissenschaften) at the University of Salzburg. In 1973, he left the Chamber to accept an appointment to full professor of public law (öffentliches Recht) at the University of Graz. After three years in Graz, Korinek returned to the capital to become a professor at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, a position he held until he moved on to the University of Vienna in 1995.[1][2][4]

Starting in 1997, he also taught at the Danube University Krems.[2]

In addition to his academic commitments, Korinek held a considerable number of extramural positions. From 1986 to 1992, Korinek was president of Austrian Standards International; from 1987 to 2002, he also sat on the board of the Deutsches Institut für Normung.[1][2] In 1999, he became a member of the board of directors of the Vienna State Opera.[5][6][7] He also served on the boards of directors of a number of publicly traded companies and NGOs,[8] most notably the Uniqa Insurance Group and the ERSTE Foundation.[6][9]

In 1998, he was invited to join the Austrian Academy of Sciences.[2][10]

In 1978, Korinek was appointed to the Austrian Constitutional Court. He was promoted to vice president of the court in 1999, to president in 2003.[1][2][10] Korinek retired from his university positions and from most other responsibilities when he assumed the presidency. He kept his seat on the board of the State Opera, a side job that was particularly dear to him.[8][11]

In early 2003, the cabinet of then-Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel launched the Austria Convention (Österreich-Konvent), a conference of legal scholars and public intellectuals tasked with drafting a new constitution for Austria. The existing constitution, exceptionally bulky and difficult to navigate, had been posing serious technical challenges to legislators and constitutional justices for decades.[12] The Convention was charged with exploring reform.[13][14] Korinek was a member of the Convention from its launch to its conclusion in 2005.[1][15]

Effective May 2008, Korinek retired from the court, citing health reasons.[3][16]

Over the course of his career, Korinek wrote several books and more than 250 scholarly articles.[2][5][8]

Death and legacy

Korinek died on 9 March 2017 after a protracted struggle with heart disease.[5][10]

Korinek is acknowledged as having been one of the Constitutional Court's most influential members during his tenure; he may in fact have been one of the court's most influential members in the institution's entire history.[10] Even before he was appointed president of the court, Korinek has had more impact on the court's jurisprudence than would have been typical for a regular member.[17][18] Commentators credit Korinek with having played a significant role in modernizing the tribunal's jurisprudence on constitutional rights questions;[19] the court itself agrees.[10] Korinek is also credited for the fact that the court, under his leadership, has softened its traditional commitment to judicial restraint and has grown more assertive, protecting human rights principles more energetically and striking down laws more often.[11]

Korinek has also been noted for his impact as an educator. Commentators have called him "one of the greats" of Austrian legal instruction.[3][17][20] Korinek is said to have played a prominent role in shaping the minds of several generations of Austrian jurists.[21]

He has been called the "doyen" of Austrian legal scholarship[22] and one of the most distinguished personalities in the country's legal history.[18][23][24]

Politics
The Austrian Constitutional Court in June 2007; Karl Korinek is seated front row center

Korinek was regarded as a committed conservative. Like his father before him, he joined the Austrian People's Party; he remained a card-carrying supporter when he was appointed to the Constitutional Court and only withdrew from membership when he was promoted to president.[3][17] He also was a member of the Cartellverband.[6]

Throughout his life, Korinek remained a devout Catholic.[25] He was active in the Vienna Catholic Academy (Wiener katholische Akademie) and in the Association of Catholic Graduates (katholischer Akademikerverband).[11] Korinek credited his Christianity in general and Thomas Aquinas in particular with having materially influenced his legal philosophy.[26]

Korinek's promotion to president of the Constitutional Court was part of an attempt by then-Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel to move the court to the right.[27] His outspoken conservatism and the circumstances of his promotion nonwithstanding, Korinek quickly acquired a reputation for integrity and non-partisan jurisprudence; he came to be widely respected across party lines.[23][20][28] During Korinek's tenure as its president, the Constitutional Court overturned several key pieces of Schüssel's legislative agenda. Also during Korinek's presidency, the court sided with Slovenian minority right activists in the Ortstafelstreit, a long-running dispute about Slovenian language rights that Jörg Haider's Freedom Party had been using to stoke populist resentment. The decision, easily the most controversial in the institution's history, earned Korinek Haider's and the Freedom Party's lasting enmity.[3][17][29]

Korinek became known for a number of signature positions that received praise from both sides of the political spectrum. He advocated for transparency in government, called for an overhaul of Austria's outsized and convoluted constitution, and demanded that legislators put craftsmanship before ideology in drafting statutes.[3][17][23] He also took a firm stance against government encroachments on constitutional rights. After his retirement, he became a vocal critic of online surveillance, especially of government-mandated online data retention.[17][30][31] His criticism of Austria's data retention program proved well founded when, in 2014, the European Court of Justice declared it illegal under European human rights rules.[29]

Korinek supported Andreas Khol in the 2016 Austrian presidential election.[20][23][32]

Personal life

Korinek was married for most of his adult life. He was survived by two children.[2]

Korinek was passionate about music.[23] He sang in the Vienna State Opera choir in his student days; he remained involved in State Opera life throughout his career and well into retirement.[5][33] Starting in 1999, he served on the board of directors of the opera, one of a handful of positions he did not retire from even when he was made the president of the Constitutional Court.[6][8][23] Korinek authored books on the relationship between government and the arts, on Joseph Haydn, and on the Der Rosenkavalier, a comic opera by Richard Strauss.[23] In an interview, Korinek compared the work of a legislator to that of a composer: both are striving to combine clarity with harmony, a parallel that Korinek claimed used to be widely discussed and acknowledged in the past.[34]

Korinek also published a book on the life and times of Julius Raab, which became a local bestseller.[34]

Selected awards

Selected publications
  • Korinek, Karl (1970). Wirtschaftliche Selbstverwaltung: eine rechtswissenschaftliche Untersuchung am Beispiel der österreichischen Rechtsordnung. Vienna: Springer.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (1971). Verfassungsrechtliche Aspekte der Raumplanung: verfassungsrechtliche und rechtspolitische Gedanken zu Planungsrecht und Eigentumsschutz. Linz: Österreichisches Institut für Mittelstandspolitik.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • —; Müller, Jörg Paul; Schlaich, Klaus (1981). Die Verfassungsgerichtsbarkeit im Gefüge der Staatsfunktionen. Berlin, New York: de Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-008614-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (1982). Grundfragen des Wirtschaftslenkungsrechts. Vienna: Orac. ISBN 3-853-68505-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (1986). Die Kontrolle wirtschaftlicher Unternehmungen durch den Rechnungshof. Vienna: Orac. ISBN 3-853-68728-8.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (1992). Entwicklungstendenzen in der Grundrechtsjudikatur des Verfassungsgerichtshofes: Vortrag, gehalten vor der Niederösterreichischen Juristischen Gesellschaft in St. Pölten am 20. November 1991. Vienna: Orac. ISBN 3-700-70335-X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (1993). Grundlagen staatlicher Privatwirtschaftsverwaltung: verfassungsrechtliche und einfachgesetzliche Rahmenbedingungen nicht hoheitlicher Verwaltung. Graz: Leykam. ISBN 3-701-18965-X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • —; Holoubek, Michael, eds. (1999). Österreichisches Bundesverfassungsrecht: Textsammlung und Kommentar. Vienna: Springer. ISBN 3-211-83222-X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (2000). Grundrechte und Verfassungsgerichtsbarkeit. Vienna: Springer. ISBN 3-211-83568-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

Other
  • Korinek, Karl (2005). Der Onkel Julius oder Der Wiederaufbau Österreichs in Anekdoten. Vienna: Manz. ISBN 3-214-00645-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (2006). Staat und Kunst. Paderborn: Schöningh. ISBN 3-506-72958-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (2009). Joseph Haydn - Erneuerung und Vollendung: eine Annäherung in fünf Essays. Vienna: Manz. ISBN 978-3-214-00694-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • — (2012). Der Rosenkavalier. Eine wienerische Maskerad' - und weiter nichts?. Vienna: Manz. ISBN 978-3-214-00691-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

References
  1. "Dr. Dr. h.c. Karl Korinek". Austrian Parliament. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  2. "Präs. o. Univ.-Prof. i. R. Dr. Karl Korinek: Lebenslauf in Stichworten" (PDF). Danube University Krems. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  3. "Karl Korinek: "Dirigent" des VfGH und großer Staatsrechtsleher". Die Presse. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  4. "Höchste steirische Auszeichnung für Korinek". Land Steiermark. August 31, 2006. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  5. "Zum Tod von Karl Korinek". Vienna State Opera. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  6. "Karl Korinek". Cartellverband. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  7. "Höchste Auszeichnung des Landes für Prof. Dr. Karl Korinek". Austria Press Agency. February 17, 2006. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  8. "Großes Goldenes Ehrenzeichen am Bande an Präsident Univ. Prof. Dr. Karl Korinek". Office of the President of Austria. December 13, 2006. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  9. "Unabhängige Kandidaten haben keine Chance". Der Standard. July 19, 2010. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  10. "Karl Korinek (1940–2017): Eine Stimme für den Rechtsstaat". Austrian Constitutional Court. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  11. "Karl der Große?" (PDF). Quart. No. 2. 2016. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  12. Berka, Walter (2016). Verfassungsrecht (6th ed.). Vienna: Österreich Verlag. pp. 14−15, 21−22, 52, 124. ISBN 978-3-7046-7281-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  13. Berka (2016), pp. 14−16.
  14. "Was ist bzw. war der Österreich-Konvent?". Neuwal. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  15. "Dr. Dr. h.c. Karl Korinek". Österreich-Konvent. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  16. Hämmerle, Walter (April 1, 2008). "Das Rennen ist eröffnet". Wiener Zeitung. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  17. "Karl Korinek wird 75 - und will nicht mehr öffentlich schimpfen". Tiroler Tageszeitung. December 12, 2015. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  18. "Trauer nach Tod von Karl Korinek". ORF. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  19. "Jahresbericht der Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien 2005" (PDF). Vienna University of Economics and Business. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  20. "Früherer VfGH-Präsident Karl Korinek (76) gestorben". Kleine Zeitung. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  21. "Karl Korinek". University of Graz. March 14, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  22. "Leitl: Österreich verliert mit Karl Korinek einen großen Staatsrechtler und wertvollen Menschen". Austrian Economic Chamber. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  23. "Früherer VfGH-Präsident Karl Korinek gestorben". Kurier. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  24. "Verfassungsrechtler Karl Korinek gestorben". Austrian Academy of Sciences. March 13, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  25. "Karl Korinek war Vorbild als Jurist und Christ". Catholic Church in Austria. March 15, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  26. "Karl Korinek: Der Verfassungsgerichtshof-Präsident in Salzburg bei der Thomas-Feier". kirchen.net. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  27. "Regierung will Verfassungsgerichtshof auf Linie bringen". NEWS. June 2, 2001. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  28. "Glawischnig: Mit Karl Korinek verliert Österreich einen Vordenker für die Modernisierung der Verfassung". The Greens. March 10, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  29. "Trauer um Spitzenjuristen Karl Korinek". Oberösterreichische Nachrichten. March 11, 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  30. "Hero der Woche: Karl Korinek". Falter. November 7, 2007. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  31. "Preisträger − Big Brother Awards 2007". Big Brother Awards Austria. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  32. "Khols Bürgerkomitee mit Schüssel, Hengstschläger und Korinek". Der Standard. March 16, 2016. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  33. "Im Gedenken an unseren ehemaligen Präsidenten Karli Korinek" (PDF). Freunde der Wiener Staatsoper. April 2017. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  34. Ferk, Janko (April 25, 2008). "Komposition in Paragrafen". Die Presse. Archived from the original on July 7, 2012. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  35. "Korinek erhielt Auszeichnung". Wiener Zeitung. April 7, 2015. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  36. "Ehrendoktoren". University of Graz. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  37. "Groß Gold Stern für Präsident Korinek". Land Steiermark. August 30, 2006. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  38. "Besuch einer Delegation des österreichischen Verfassungsgerichtshofs beim Bundesverfassungsgericht". Federal Constitutional Court. July 4, 2007. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  39. "Innitzer-Preis 2015 geht an früheren VfGH-Präsidenten Korinek". Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna. November 16, 2015. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  40. "Ehemaliger VfGH-Präsident Korinek erhält Innitzer-Preis". Der Standard. November 16, 2015. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
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