The Supreme Court expresses quandary regarding evaluation of functions of the Supreme Court, made by social partners of the government and accepted by the Cabinet, who acknowledged one of the basic functions of the Supreme Court as of the highest court instance in the state, creation of uniform case-law as useless. Further development of judicature of cassation instance raises alarm, as it has essential meaning not only in creation of uniform case-law in the country, but also in development of legal thought and national rights.

The Head of the Division of the Case-law Zigrida Mita indicates that database of judicial rulings that has been created and supported by the Division of the Case-law of the Supreme Court, stimulates uniform understanding and interpretation of standards of law, supports uniform and stable case-law in concrete categories of cases. The aim of it is to help judges in reviewing of cases in similar occasions, to reduce terms of review of case, and to stimulate uniform understanding and application of law by prosecutors, advocates, municipal officials and representatives of other legal professions. Z. Mita stresses that creation of database of the case-law is function of the Supreme Court that has been established by the law „On Judicial Power”, in its turn, procedural laws establish necessity of using the case-law, while reviewing cases.

Already in year 2009 due to reducement of the budget the Supreme Court can’t execute the fubnction of creation of uniform case-law and judicature in full amount. At present in the Supreme Court there hasn’t been made the analysis of the case-law and, in cooperation with speciālists of jurisprudence, there haven’t been prepared summary of the case-law on topical questions in the field of law. If in the budget of year 2010 there will not be provided financing for creation of uniform case-law, then database of the case-law that has been created by the Supreme Court in the framework of Judicial Information System will not be available to Latvian judges and society.

The database of the case-law of the Supreme Court is available to judges from year 2006. At present in the database of the case-law of the Supreme Court there are 674 of rulings of the Senate: 169 rulings of the Department of Civil Cases of the Senate, 236 rulings of the Department of Criminal Cases of the Senate and 269 rulings of the Department of Administrative Cases of the Senate. As from August 2009, the database is available for public access in a home page of Ministry of Justice. The most juridically significant and interesting rulings of the Senate as from year 2002 have been published in the home page of the Supreme Court. Juridically grounded conclusionsthat have been used for argumentation of sentences have been summarized as theses of selected decisions. The main criterion for selection of decisions is juridical interest, raised by the decision and its usefulness in creation of case-law.

Following figures speak of using of case-law of judicature: in last four months (from June till September) the data from the database of the case-law of the Supreme Court was searched and reviewed for 86 516 times.

According to Satversme of the Republic of Latvia and law „On Judicial Power”, the state, providing the appropriate financing in the law on budget for the next year, has to guarantee effective legal protection of the person in the competent court. The Supreme Court believes that competence of the court is in the most direct way related to summarizing of the case-law and availability of judicature to all national courts.

 



Information prepared by

Head of the Division of Communications of the Supreme Court Rasma Zvejniece

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