On the 25th of November, the Latvian Judicial Conference elected Peteris Dzalbe, the vice-Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, in the post of the Chair of the Judicial Disciplinary Committee.   

Pursuant to the Judicial Disciplinary Liability Law, the Chair of the Judicial Disciplinary Committee is the vice-Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Since Pavels Gruzins, who was elected in the post of the Chair of the Disciplinary Committee at the previous conference, terminated execution of judicial duties, it was necessary to elect the new Chair of the Committee. Peteris Dzalbe previously was the Chair of the Disciplinary Court; it means that the Plenary Session of the Supreme Court will have to elect the new Chair of the Disciplinary Court.  

In its turn, the Judicial Conference elected Ervins Kuskis, the Chair of the Chamber of Criminal Cases of the Supreme Court, in composition of the Judicial Qualifications Committee.

The member of the Judicial Qualifications Committee had to be advanced from among judges of the Chamber of Criminal Cases of the Supreme Court, because Inguna Radzevica, who held this office, was appointed in the post of the senator of the Department of Criminal Cases of the Senate. Pursuant to the law “On Judicial Power”, the Judicial Qualifications Committee consists of one senator from each department of the Senate, of one judge from each Chamber of the Supreme Court, as well as of one judge of the Judicial Panel of Civil Cases of a regional court, of one judge of the Judicial Panel of Criminal Cases of a regional court, of one judge of Administrative regional court, two judges of district (city) courts and two judges of departments of land books.  

Although term of office of the Judicial Disciplinary Committee and the Judicial Qualifications Committee elected at the previous Judicial Conference hasn’t expired yet, particular members of committees had to be re-elected the Judicial Conference of this year, which took place on the 25th of November.

The Judicial Conference also listened to report of Gunars Aigars, the Chair of the Judicial Qualifications Committee, and report of Visvaldis Sprudzans, the Chair of the Committee on Judicial Ethics, on work of these institutions of judicial self-government, which has been done since the last Judicial Conference.

Pursuant to bylaws of the Judicial Qualifications Committee, the Committee provides report on its work to the Judicial Conference once a year. In its turn, obligation of the Committee on Judicial Ethics to provide a report on its work once a year to the Judicial Conference is stated in the law “On Judicial Power”.   

 

Information prepared by

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

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