Famous German Lawyers & Judges

Max Weber was a German historian, political economist, jurist, and sociologist. Widely regarded as one of the most influential and important theorists, Weber's ideas had a profound influence on social research and social theory. Although he did not see himself as a sociologist, Weber is often counted among the fathers of sociology alongside Émile Durkheim, Auguste Comte, and Karl Marx.

German-born American political scientist and historian Hans Morgenthau, a leading twentieth-century figure in the study of international relations, is noted for his contributions in international relations theory and the study of international law. His book Politics Among Nations introduced the concept of political realism that played an instrumental role in the foreign policy of the US.

Roland Freisler was a German Nazi judge, jurist, and politician. From 1942 to 1945, he served as the president of the People's Court. As a jurist, Freisler had a major influence on the Nazification of Germany's legal system. He also played an influential role in the Wannsee Conference, which brought about the Holocaust.

German political activist and a founder-member of the Red Army Faction, Horst Mahler also supported Maoism, before becoming a neo-Nazi lawyer. He later turned to rightist politics and became a prominent Holocaust denier and a National Democratic Party member. He was jailed in 2009 for spreading racial hatred and released in 2020.

Enamoured by the ideas of French and German philosophers, Ferdinand Lassalle initially aspired to be a lecturer. He later joined the socialist cause and spearheaded Germany’s social democratic movement. He also introduced terms such as the iron law of wages and concepts such as Lassallism, or achieving socialist ideals through the state.

Roman Catholic Centre Party leader and two-time German chancellor Wilhelm Marx was a jurist and the founder of the Catholic Schools Organization. Best known for accepting the Dawes Plan for World War I reparations, he was charged with the Volksvereinsprozeß during the Nazi regime.

A doctorate in law, Roman Herzog had initially been a teaching assistant and then a political science professor. Stepping into politics later, he was elected as the first German president following the reunification of Germany. Apart from an honorary knighthood, he also won the Charlemagne Prize.

Karl Heinrich Ulrichs was a German lawyer, journalist, jurist, and writer. Today, he is widely regarded as a pioneer of the modern gay rights movement and sexology. Ulrichs is considered the first openly gay man in the history of mankind. In August 1867, Karl Heinrich Ulrichs urged the goverment to revoke anti-homosexual laws, becoming the first homosexual to do so.

Born to Jewish scholars in Germany, Geoffrey Elton later moved with his family, first to Czechoslovakia and then to Britain. He grew up to become a renowned historian who specialized in the Tudor period. He also taught history at Cambridge and penned books such as England Under the Tudors.

Samuel von Pufendorf was a German jurist, economist, political philosopher, and historian. Among Pufendorf's major achievements are his revisions and commentaries of the natural law theories of Hugo Grotius and Thomas Hobbes. In Germany, Samuel von Pufendorf is best remembered as a precursor of an intellectual and philosophical movement called the Age of Enlightenment. 

The German-Swedish lawyer and politician Walburga Habsburg Douglas serves as the vice-president of the Paneuropean Union and is also a board member of the Institute for Information on the Crimes of Communism. The former parliament member was born in Germany and is the daughter of last crown prince of Austria-Hungary and the granddaughter of the last Austrian emperor, Charles I.