This year, the lay judges and juvenile lay judges will be elected nationwide for the term of office from 2024 to 2028. Idar-Oberstein is also looking for men and women who would like to take on this responsible honorary office. Interested parties can still apply to the municipal administration.
Every five years, the courts look for committed people who would like to take on the important and influential office of lay assessor. At a local court, two lay judges and one professional judge take part in the sessions, while two lay judges sit alongside two or three professional judges in the main criminal chamber of the regional court. The lay assessors - also known as lay judges - are an important part of the court process - from the indictment to the verdict. At the end of the trial, they judge the guilt or innocence of the accused together with the professional judges and help decide on the sentence. The lay judges are therefore directly involved in the administration of justice, making an important contribution to society and strengthening democracy.
The next election of lay judges will take place in the second half of 2023 for the term of office from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2028. For this, the city administration is looking for citizens who live in Idar-Oberstein, are at least 25 and at most 69 years old on January 1, 2024 and have German citizenship. No previous legal experience or training is required, but applicants must have no criminal record and should be unprejudiced and responsible. They should also have educational experience with adolescents. The lay assessors are obliged to attend the scheduled hearings. They are released from their duties by their employer and receive compensation for loss of earnings, lost time and travel expenses. In their office, they gain new experience and access to the practice of law.
The municipality compiles a list of candidates from the people who apply for the office of lay assessor. This list should take appropriate account of all groups of the population in terms of gender, age, profession and social status. The lay assessor selection committee at the local court will select the principal and assistant lay assessors from the nominations in the second half of 2023.
Interested parties can apply for the office of lay assessor by Tuesday, June 20, 2023, at the Idar-Oberstein municipal administration, Legal Department, Georg-Maus-Straße 1, 55743 Idar-Oberstein. They can also obtain further information on the honorary office, the requirements to be met and any grounds for exclusion by calling 06781/64-313 and 314 or sending an email to rechtsamt@idar-oberstein.de. Further information can be found on the website www.schoeffenwahl2023.de. The application form can also be downloaded there and from the municipal website www.idar-oberstein.de.