action before the administrative court

What can the court decide?

It may quash the examination decision and require the authority to make a new decision in accordance with its legal view; § 113 paragraph 5 of the Code of Administrative Court Procedure provides for this in the form of a re-decision judgment. The court does not substitute a higher grade, because the examiners' margin of assessment is preserved. The position is different for arithmetically clear errors, for instance incorrectly marked answers in a multiple-choice procedure. The court may also order that a further examination attempt be granted if a procedural defect has invalidated the previous attempt.

How does such a procedure work in practice?

Before the administrative court there is no requirement for legal representation under § 67 of the Code of Administrative Court Procedure, but at the appeal stage there is. Proceedings frequently take one to several years, and for career-opening examinations courts often set the amount in dispute at €15,000, resulting in substantial court and legal costs. Those wishing to prevent imminent exmatriculation must also consider interim legal protection, as the action alone does not secure the study place. If funds are lacking, legal aid may be available if the action has sufficient prospects of success. Whether the effort is worthwhile depends on the substance of the objections; prospects of success should be assessed by a lawyer, and the deadlines and requirements are governed by the applicable examination regulations and state law.

What applies to graduates of studies in an EU country?

Examinations at universities in Romania, Croatia, Malta, or the Baltic states cannot be challenged before German administrative courts. The path to German courts opens as soon as a German authority makes a decision: on the licence to practise, on the recognition of a qualification under Directive 2005/36/EC, or on the result of the knowledge test. The competent court is then the administrative court at the seat of the authority, which entails travel and service-of-documents issues for those living abroad. A German address for service is therefore advisable so that deadlines are not missed due to postal matters.

Common misunderstanding

An action does not replace a timely administrative appeal. If the one-month deadline has been missed, the decision becomes final and the court can no longer address the substance of the case.