During the first considerations and the later published draft laws, the project for a legally based quota was criticised by legal scholars for being unconstitutional and incompatible with European law. This referred, above all, to the conformity of the rigid quota laid down in the law, which the European Court of Justice (ECJ) classified as inadmissible. However, a distinction must be made between a rigid quota exclusively for women and one for women as well as for men. The fact that the Act is formulated with both genders in mind speaks for constitutional conformity. Even though the Act is commonly known in society as "the women's quota", it takes account of both men and women, as it also requires a quota of 30% for men. The fact that the latter is not necessary in most companies does not affect the constitutional conformity of the Act. There were also discussions about the suitability of the law, i.e. if less intense/milder measures than a rigid quota would suffice or not. 

To increase the proportion of women in leadership positions through self-imposed quota regulations might be a milder measure. However, as observations over many years and the regularly published reports on the state of affairs have shown, this in particular, has not proved suitable in significantly increasing the proportion of women.

In its judgment on the Badeck case, the ECJ considered a binding quota of women for the appointment of supervisory boards by the federal government to be permissible. However, a judgment on a "rigid quota" for this type of appointment has not yet been made. For an assessment in this regard, it should be noted that a quota on the proportion of women on supervisory boards does not relate to access to jobs, but only to representation on an electoral body for a limited period. It is also suitable for influencing equal opportunities for women in leadership positions at different levels in companies. Such a quota system would therefore be permissible under European law because it is justified according to Article 3 of the Equal Treatment Directive 2006/54/EC in conjunction with Art. 157 (4) Treaty on Functioning of the European Union.