Overview
- At the end of 2025 more than one million unresolved criminal procedures were pending, after roughly 5.5 million new cases were opened for a third consecutive year.
- The backlog has increased by nearly 50% since 2020, rising from about 700,000 to over one million open matters.
- Statutory time limits were breached in 2025, leading to the release of 50 suspects from pretrial detention in cases typically involving serious violent offenses.
- The Deutscher Richterbund cites a nationwide shortfall of about 2,000 prosecutors and criminal judges and says the backlog cannot be reduced without substantial hiring.
- Administrative courts registered over 140,000 asylum lawsuits in 2025—more than double 2022—tied to faster BAMF processing and higher rejection rates, as judges and police unions call for funding and modernization.