Legitimate expectation

When trust protection is a principle of law, which states that a have placed the citizen trust of the legal system is to be protected.

In Germany it is derived from the constitutional rule of law (Article 20 of the Basic Law ); in Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein is constitutional basis for the prohibition of arbitrariness.

In public law, the principle of protection, for example, expresses the fact that the citizens must rely on his decisions based on the existing legal and have no adverse repercussions for the citizens to come into force in legislative changes. Another effect is that in German law administrative acts which favor the citizen may only be canceled with effect for the future or in the absence of protection of the citizen ( § 48, § 49 of the Administrative Procedure Act ).

In the social law of the protection of legitimate expectations in § 45 paragraph 2 SGB X is normalized.

Even in civil law the principle of the protection comes into play, for example by the confidence of the buyer that the owner of a thing is entitled to transfer the property, is protected (see more detail below in good faith acquisition by non-entitled ).

Literature and links

• Beatrice Weber Dürler: Legitimate public law, Basel 1983 ( at the same time Habilitationsschrift Zurich ), ISBN 3-7190-0853-3.
• § 48 Section 2 Administrative Procedure Act as an example of a legal regulation of protection of legitimate

Sources and references

• State law ( Germany )
• Administrative Law ( Germany )