The courts are run by people in the same unpopular political establishment as the rest of the country. Yes, they absolutely are a political instrument, although some people like to pretend otherwise when they get their policies undemocratically rammed into law through the courts.
All legal systems make utilitarian considerations. Furthermore, legal systems like Germany's are even more respectful of common sense than ones based on English common law.
> The courts are run by people in the same unpopular political establishment as the rest of the country.
I don't disagree, but that's de facto. Nominally, they're independent and Germany doesn't rely on judge's guesstimates as much, they are supposed to apply the laws, not create them, which is why the German Constitutional Court has been criticized for becoming politically activist instead of remaining neutral.
Since they're de facto appointed by the political establishment, you can't expect them to not be carefully selected for "obedience by accident" (they're independent, they just happen to think the same way), but you can also not do it too obviously if you don't want to shake the cage too much or people might disregard the courts completely.
Government institutions with mission creep issues that start to grow is a common problem in Germany, and the courts regularly tell them to stop, this isn't a new development.
