Beatrix Karl
Beatrix Karl, born on December 10, 1967 in Graz, is an Austrian politician, University professor, former Minister of Justice and Member of Parliament for the ÖVP (Österreichische Volkspartei, Austrian People's Party) since 2006.
Political career[edit]
Beatrix Karl was candidate for the ÖVP in the Steiermark Landtag elections in 2005, but surprisingly failed to gain a seat. In the 2006 national elections, she was on the federal list as a "newcomer" for the People's Party in the National Assembly. After the national elections of 2008, Beatrix Karl moved back into the Austrian National Council and served there as a science spokesperson for the ÖVP.
On July 20, the Federal Minister Dr. Michael Spindelegger, who was also the General Secretary of the ÖAAB, appointed Beatrix Karl as Federal Chair of the ÖAAB. On January the 26th, 2010, she was sworn in as the successor of Johannes Hahn as EU Commissioner-designate for Regional Policy in the Barroso II Commission, and in the federal government Faymann I as Minister for Science and Research.
As part of the reshuffle following the resignation of Josef Pröll in April 2011, she was appointed as Minister of Justice and sworn in on April 21, 2011. The term of office of the Cabinet Faymann I ended in December 2013 with the appointment of the Federal Government Faymann II, which Beatrix was no longer a part of.
Education[edit]
Beatrix Karl attended elementary school (1974-1978) and secondary school (1978-1982) in Bad Gleichenberg. In 1986, she graduated with honors from the high school in Bach. From 1986 to 1991, she studied law at the Karl-Franzens-University Graz, and in 1991, she was Assistant Professor at the Institute for Labour and Social Law in Graz. She completed her doctoral studies in 1995 with honors. Beatrix was awarded the Science Award of the Labour Upper Austria for her PhD. From 1999 to 2002, she was APART fellow of the Austrian Academy of Sciences at the Max-Planck-Institute for Foreign and International Social Law in Munich.
Notable work[edit]
Beatrix Karl has published about 100 papers on various aspects of Austrian, German and European labour and social legislation, including the relationship between social security and European competition law, the future of the social union within the EU and the right of termination.
