(3) The appointment of the judges of the Supreme Federal Court shall be decided jointly by the Federal Minister of Justice and a committee for the election of judges consisting of the Land Ministers of Justice and an equal number of members elected by the Bundestag.
(4) Otherwise the constitution of the Supreme Federal Court and its procedure shall be regulated by federal legislation.
Article 96
(1) Higher federal courts shall be established for the spheres of ordinary, administrative, finance, labour and social jurisdiction.
(2) Article 95 , paragraph (3), shall apply to the judges of the higher federal courts with the proviso that the place of the Federal Minister of Justice and the Land Ministers of Justice be taken by the Ministers competent for the particular matter. Their conditions of service must be regulated by a special federal law.
(3) The Federation may establish federal disciplinary courts for disciplinary proceedings against federal officials and federal judges.
Article 97
(1) Judges shall be independent and subject only to the law.
(2) Judges who are principally, regularly and definitely employed as such may, against their will, be dismissed before the expiry of their term of office, or permanently or temporarily suspended from office or transferred to another office or be placed on the retired list only through the decision of a court and only on the grounds and in the forms prescribed by legislation. Legislation may set an age limit at which judges who have been appointed for life shall retire. In the case of alterations in the structure of the courts or their districts, judges may be transferred to another court or suspended from office. They must, however, retain their full salary.
Article 98
(1) The legal status of the federal judges must be regulated by a special federal law.
