During the 1970s and 1980s, Hager served in positions such as a Judge of the High Court and President of the Senate. In 1991, he was appointed Councillor of the Supreme Court. He also worked as a lecturer at the University of Vienna. In May 1994, the president accorded him the title of professor. On 11 November 1996, Hager began his term as a
Member of the European Parliament representing Austria. For most of his parliamentary term, he was a member of the
right-wing populist Austrian Freedom Party, but left the party on 14 February 2003. During his first term as a Member of the European Parliament, Hager served on the Committee on Institutional Affairs and the Committee on the Rules of Procedure, the Verification of Credentials and Immunities. During his second term, He participated in the
Committee on Petitions, the
Committee on Legal Affairs, the
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy and the
Committee on Constitutional Affairs, although, during Hager's time, most of these bore different names. At times, he served as a substitute on the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and Industrial Policy and the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market. == Personal life and death ==