The Reunification of Germany in 1990 and ongoing European integration have in recent years led to an increasingly difficult economic situation in Germany, to empty public purses and to the Finance Minister pressuring the Minister of Justice,' in the hope of gaining additional funds from the relatively small justice budget to help cover the costs of restructuring in the East2 and of increased unemployment. Purely fiscal reasons are thus an inducement for the refashioning of the justice system into a slimmer and more effective machinery. At the same time the burden on the civil justice system in Germany is continuously increasing, as in most other industrial nations.3 In 1991 there were 1.63 million new claims, by 1993 the number had increased to 2.08 million,4 and in 1994, 2.12 million. An increase in the number of judges or other judicial personnel to balance the increased case load is not possible due to lack of funds. This too provides a considerable impetus to reform the justice system, while of course ensuring that individuals continue to be provided with a system of legal protection based on the rule of law which is popular, has a human face, and is efficient at the same time. Discussions for reform thus center on the consideration of various relief measures. Be-