Law Professor: Socialization of Housing Is a Basic Right — Federal Blocking Law Is Unconstitutional

Published on 22 October 2026 in the Tagesspiegel, an interview with Frankfurt law professor Maximilian Pichl presented the legal counter-argument to Chancellor Merz's proposed federal 'Investment Protection Law', which would prevent German states — in practice, Berlin — from socialising large housing corporations. Pichl, one of 227 prominent signatories of an open letter against the measure that included actors Katharina Thalbach and Corinna Harfouch, argued that Article 15 of the 1949 Basic Law (Grundgesetz) represents a deliberate post-war constitutional compromise between conservative and social-democratic traditions, enshrining economic pluralism. He contended that restricting this article through ordinary federal legislation is constitutionally dubious: 'Socialization is also a basic right.' The professor framed his objections as 'constitutional and democratic rather than purely political', emphasising that Article 15 was kept in the Grundgesetz precisely to maintain openness to different economic models. The open letter represents a broad coalition of academics, artists, and public figures who argue that the federal government is attempting to circumvent a constitutional provision through the back door of ordinary statute.