Disputed custody proceedings Building law The investigative proceedings involving building law that is executed within the purview of the municipality have again shown that builders accept deviations from their building permit in the management of their construction. Furthermore, the building authorities often do not take steps against these deviations with the proper swiftness or the proper means. It seems that people are not sufficiently aware of the fact that improper execution of development and planning law and of building codes results in infringement of fundamental rights, of the principle of equality and of the rule-of-law principle. Zoning There is also a potential for conflict in zoning proceedings. It is not only difficult for the individual to comprehend that his or her private interests must give way to public interests, but there are also complaints about the lack of influence by an individual on the decisionmaking process and its lack of transparency. proceedings More cases with EU relevance Divested legal entities 18 In (disputed) custody proceedings, the evaluations performed by expert witnesses, the duration of the proceedings and the removal of children to foreign countries was in the centre of criticism. During the reporting year the importance of EU law in this context has grown. In a number of cases, there was disharmony between national and supranational law. In this context, the AOB would like to point out the permit requirements and the notification obligations for stair lifts in residential buildings (which differ from State to State) and the necessity for timely barrier-free design and construction of public buildings. The AOB also frequently deals with questions of different structuring of the tariffs of public utility facilities and in this context the unequal treatment of senior citizens that can no longer be solely evaluated in accordance with national laws. It is with great regret that the AOB has been forced to acknowledge that it has only limited powers to monitor large sectors of general-interest public services, as these entities have often been divested and have become private limited companies or joint stock companies. In these cases, the AOB can only hope that the companies are willing to provide a statement but cannot force them to cooperate.