Rudolf Steinberg

Rudolf Steinberg was awarded two civil medals for his lifetime achievements, the Hessischer Verdienstorden of the State of Hesse in 2009, and the Ehrenplakette der Stadt Frankfurt am Main in 2012.

With nine years in the office, none of Steinberg's predecessors served a longer term than he did. He announced that he will step back as university president on the day after his 65th birthday for the end of 2008. Werner Müller-Esterl was elected his successor.

From 1977 until 1980 Rudolf Steinberg was professor for public law at the Leibniz University Hannover before he held the chair for public law, environmental law and administrative science at Goethe University Frankfurt until 2000.

After studying classics for his Abitur in Gelsenkirchen, Steinberg studied law and economic science at the universities of Freiburg and Cologne before turning to political science at the University of Michigan. In 1970 he received a doctorate from the University of Freiburg after publishing a thesis entitled Staatslehre und Interessenverbände: Interessenverbände im Spiegel amerikanischer und deutscher Literatur und Rechtsprechung“ (in English:State theory and associations: Associations reflected in American and German literature and jurisdiction). In 1977 he published his habilitation thesis entitled Politik und Verwaltungsorganisation: zur Reform der Regierungs- und Verwaltungsorganisation unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Obersten Bundesbehörden in den Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika (Politics and administrative organisation: reform of governmental and administrative organisations with special consideration of the highest federal authorities in the United States of America.

Rudolf Steinberg (born 23 June 1943 in Cochem, Rhine Province) is professor emeritus for public law and from 2000 to 2008 was president of the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt.