From introdiction: "Since 9/11 the rule of law – or better, in the German and French continental version, Rechtsstaat/l’état de droit – has changed. 9/11 has become the metaphor for the globalization of terrorism as well as for threat to personal and national security. After 9/11 we lost our virginity of lawfulness, trying to counter the powers of evil. In the early times of the new millennium, the reaction of the Government of the United States of America was prompt: The USA Patriot Act, Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism, enacted in 2001 , increased and aggravated a lot of laws to make them fit against terrorist activities, but restricting fundamental rights and freedoms at the same time."(...)