On October 30, following a few years pause, the Day of First-Year Students was again held at the Supreme Court, gathering first-year students of law faculties of Latvian universities. A total of 60 students from the University of Latvia, Rīga Stradiņš University, Daugavpils University, Turība University, Rēzekne Academy of Technologies and the Baltic International Academy attended the Supreme Court.

Aigars Strupišs, the President of the Supreme Court and the Chair of the Judicial Council, introduced the students to the judicial system of Latvia, the work of the Supreme Court, the procedure for appealing rulings in cassation, and the profession of a judge. Students were interested in the procedure for selecting judges and in the role of oral proceedings in the Supreme Court. Anita Zikmane, the Head of the Division of Case-law and Research of the Supreme Court, introduced the visitors with the availability of Senate rulings, as well as with useful resources on the Supreme Court's website, such as the opportunities for using the archive of Senate’s case-law rulings, summaries of case-law, and historical materials. Anita Zikmane encouraged the students to explore the availability of information before choosing research topics for their studies, because in some cases court proceedings take place at closed hearings and the availability of rulings for research may be limited. Moreover, she noted that, in principle, the range of information available on websites is wide and fully sufficient for supplementing the study process with familiarization with court rulings. In addition, during the study process, one should acquire the skills to make use of not only the Senate's rulings, but also to get acquainted with the rulings of international and supranational courts.

At the conclusion of the visit, the students attended the Supreme Court Museum and explored the premises of the Palace of Justice.

Since 2009, the Supreme Court has been organizing the Day of First-Year Students in the Supreme Court in order to expand the understanding and interest of future lawyers in the judicial system of Latvia and to give them an insight into one of the most interesting, yet difficult legal professions – the position of a judge. Even after the Day of First-Year Students, students take the opportunity to turn to the Supreme Court for obtaining useful information in the study process and to attend court hearings.

 

Baiba Kataja, Augstākās tiesas preses sekretāre

Tālr.: 67020396; e-pasts: baiba.kataja@at.gov.lv