On April 5, 12 students from Alūksne, Līvāni, Jelgava, Bauska, Jūrmala, Mārupe and Rīga visited the Supreme Court to learn about the judicial work.

At the beginning of the day, the students met with Aigars Strupišs, the President of the Supreme Court, who introduced them with the judicial system of Latvia, the competence of the Supreme Court and the work of the Judicial Council. The students inquired whether the work of each judge is evaluated on a daily basis and whether a judge can be punished if the Senate overturns the decision of a lower court and remits the case for a new hearing. Moreover, the students were interested in President’s career path. The President spoke about the skills and competencies needed in the work of a judge; what examinations are required to be passed for candidates for the position of judge. The President described his career path as atypical, because most judges start their careers in the district court, continue in the regional court and then end up in the Supreme Court, but he became a Supreme Court judge after a long-term work as a lecturer at the University of Latvia and following the participation in the development of many commercial law regulations.

Under the leadership of Aivars Uminskis, the Senator of the Department of Criminal Cases, the students took part in moot court, examining a criminal case of bicycle theft. The students took on the role of both judge and prosecutor, the accused persons, their defenders, the victim and the witness. At the conclusion of the day, the students recognized the moot court as the most interesting part of the Shadow Day, because it was an opportunity to see the trial in real life, to act it out with an already experienced judge. The moot court made it possible to learn what it is like to be a judge who makes a decision after hearing out the participants in the case, and what it is like to be a participant in the case who has to justify his/her position.

Afterwards, the ‘shadows’ visited their ‘shadow givers’ – the chair of the Department of Administrative Cases Veronika Krūmiņa, judges of the Department Dzintra Amerika, Jānis Pleps and Līvija Slica, and judges of the Department of Civil Cases Zane Pētersone, Kristīne Zīle and Marika Senkāne. The students assessed the conversations with their ‘shadow givers’ as highly valuable and acknowledged that the experience gained during the conversations enforced their interest in the legal profession.

The students also walked the corridors of the historic Palace of Justice, looked into the courtrooms and visited the Supreme Court Museum.

Shadow Day is a worldwide school career education event which is organized every year in Latvia by the organization Junior Achievement - Latvia. Its main task is to broaden students' horizons and understanding of the competencies and skills needed in their future profession.

 

Information prepared by Baiba Kataja, the Press Secretary of the Supreme Court

Tel.: +371 67020396; e-mail: baiba.kataja@at.gov.lv