Department of Criminal Cases

The Department of Criminal Cases was established on October 3, 1995.

Aivars UMINSKIS is the Chair of the Department of Criminal Cases.

Aivars Uminskis graduated from the Latvian Police Academy in 1997 with a Master's degree in Law. He has been a Senator of the Department of Criminal Cases of the Supreme Court since 2019. He is a Member of the Judicial Disciplinary Committee.

He started his career in 1997 in the prosecutor's office: he was a prosecutor in the Military Prosecutor's Office, Rēzekne District Prosecutor's Office, Latgale Judicial District Prosecutor's Office. From 2002 – a judge at the Latgale Regional Court, from 2005 – a judge at the Riga Regional Court, in 2011-2014 – an acting judge at the Chamber of Criminal Cases of the Supreme Court. 

• Decision No 2 of the Plenary Session of the Supreme Court of 14 April 2025 “On the Election of the Chair of the Senate’s Department of Criminal Cases”

The Department of Criminal Cases consists of the chair and seven senators and one acting senator for a fixed period of time.

Each senator in the Department of Criminal Cases has a personal assistant.

Four legal research counsels and a consultant also work in the Department.

Office work of the Department is ensured by the Chancery of the Supreme Court.

See information about authority and proceedings in the Department of Criminal Cases here.