The latest edition of the Supreme Court Bulletin provides an overview of the Court's work in 2024. It includes statistics and reports by the chairs of Senate’s departments, which provide analysis of the most important legal issues and rulings in the past year. It also includes reports by the heads of the Division of Case-law and Research and the Administration of the Supreme Court. The President of the Supreme Court, in his summary of the work done, emphasizes that the current workload of the senators (50-60 cases per year) is an optimal indicator and allows to focus on the most important work of the Senate – the development of a unform case-law.

The section on legal thoughts includes an address by the President of the Supreme Court, Aigars Strupišs, to Latvian judges on the occasion of the Independence Day of Latvia, as well as speeches by several senators. At a conference organised by the Supreme Court of Lithuania, Senator Sanita Osipova spoke on the limits of permissible criticism of the work of public officials. Also, at a meeting of the Senate of the Latvian Academy of Sciences, as a candidate for full membership of the Academy, she gave an overview of her research topic – a state governed by the rule of law. At the Saeima (parliament) event dedicated to Francis Trasuns, Senator Jānis Pleps spoke about significant personalities in Latvian history, and at the University of Latvia he gave a speech on Konstantīns Čakste. Senator Rudīte Vīduša's interview in the studio of the charity marathon "Dod pieci" about the healthcare problems from the point of view of the courts is also published.

Also in this section, more practical legal topics are covered by the departmental legal research counsels. Aleksandra Azeva writes on the Senate's practice in assessing aggravating circumstances under the Criminal Law, and Viktorija Soņeca addresses the Artificial Intelligence Act. The Bulletin includes a summary of the research on legal syllogism by Jānis Musts, a PhD student at the Faculty of Law of the University of Latvia, created in cooperation with the Supreme Court, which serves as a comprehensive contribution in the field of philosophy of law.

In the section on legal practice, there are overviews of the Senate's dialogue with the Constitutional Court of Latvia and the Court of Justice of the European Union, and of important legal issues in the practice of the Department of Criminal Cases.

Senators and staff have gained valuable experience during their work travels and share their insights in the Bulletin on the protection of human rights in the world of artificial intelligence, judicial selection and judicial ethics, intellectual property law, trademark registration, state aid, proper interpretation of laws and regulations, the Digital Services Act and other topical issues.

The history section focuses on the establishment of the Administration of the Supreme Court 20 years ago, which is today viewed as a step in the right direction for strengthening the independence of the Supreme Court.

In the Bulletin’s column "From the other side", a conversation with Ļubova Kušnire, Senator of the Department of Civil Cases, who, having worked almost to the statutory maximum age of a judge, still enjoys her work. The Senator speaks about the experience gained in the public administration and how proud she is of her daughter, who is also a judge.

"The Supreme Court Bulletin is published twice a year. It is distributed to Latvian courts and other judicial institutions, libraries and law faculties of universities. The 30th issue of the Bulletin is still being printed in the printing house, but it is already available electronically on the Court's website in the Latvian language.

 

Information prepared by

Rasma Zvejniece, Head of the Division of Communication of the Supreme Court

E-mail: rasma.zvejniece@at.gov.lv, telephone: +371 67020396, +371 28652211