Overview
- The 5th Senate of the Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia ruled that the Desiderius-Erasmus-Stiftung has no federal entitlement to funding for 2021.
- The judgment affirms the outcome reached by the Cologne Administrative Court in the foundation’s case against the Federal Office of Administration.
- The court held that the unconstitutional funding practice used in 2019 cannot serve as a basis for grants in 2021 or for retroactive support to previously excluded foundations.
- The ruling is not yet final, as the court denied a direct appeal on points of law but left open a non-admission complaint to the Federal Administrative Court.
- Questions about the AfD’s representation across multiple Bundestag terms were not decisive on appeal, and the original lawsuit had sought funding for 2018 through 2021.