Overview
- The draft would abolish or sharply restrict environmental associations’ standing to sue at EU and federal level, limiting lawsuits to those directly affected.
- CSU parliamentary leader Alexander Hoffmann says only individuals who are "unmittelbar betroffen" should be able to file cases, excluding associations.
- The paper proposes capping the appeals path to at most two court instances to accelerate legal certainty for projects.
- Environmental organizations, including Deutsche Umwelthilfe, argue the rights of associations to litigate are guaranteed by European and international law and already fall short of EU minimum standards in Germany.
- The proposal is part of a broader CSU package to be discussed at Kloster Seeon and remains a party-level initiative that would face legal and political scrutiny before any legislative change.