The new issue of the Bulletin of the Supreme Court is record thick; it contains 170 pages. Readers will find materials of Supreme Court conferences as well as legal opinions of senators and Supreme Court employees, expressed at various conferences, as well as written exclusively for the Bulletin.

The Supreme Court, in cooperation with the Constitutional Court, organized an international conference on the role of the judiciary in execution of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights. Thus, the Bulletin contains valuable reflections of Síofra O'Leary, the President of the European Court of Human Rights, Marialena Tsirli, the Registrar of the European Court of Human Rights, Ineta Ziemele, the Judge of the Court of Justice of the European Union, Aigars Strupišs, the President of the Supreme Court of Latvia, Jānis Pleps and Anita Kovaļevska, Senators of the Supreme Court (Senate), and Mārtiņš Mits, the Judge of the European Court of Human Rights.

Whereas, the seminar organized by the Department of Administrative Cases of the Senate in cooperation with ACA-Europe sheds light on such topics as administrative silence or the discretionary power of institutions. This is when the institution remains silent and does not respond to our submissions.

This year was a year of public legal education for the Supreme Court. Animated films about a court have been created, a seminar for teachers has been conducted regarding the teaching materials prepared by the Supreme Court, and more than 1,000 schoolchildren have visited the Supreme Court – all of this information is available in the Bulletin.

In the section dedicated to legal opinions, there are addresses included given by senators at the Latvian Judges Conference, at the scientific conference of the University of Latvia and at the "Law and Language" conference organized in cooperation with the Court of Justice of the European Union, as well as at the LAMPA Conversation Festival. There is an exclusive interview with Dr. Frank Emmert, the John S. Grimes Professor of Law and Executive Director of the Centre for International and Comparative Law at Indiana University at Indianapolis School of Law, dedicated specially to the Supreme Court Bulletin. In the interview, the professor encourages us to stay alert, because – the storm is coming! Articles of Supreme Court legal research counsels Viktorija Soņeca, Oskars Kulmanis, Aleksandra Azeva and consultant to the Division of Case-law and Research Zinaida Indrūna have been specially written for the Supreme Court Bulletin.

Rich range of legal information of other countries can be found in the column on work‑related travel experiences and discoveries. Moreover, Latvian case-law can be found in the dedicated section.

The Bulletin contains not only information of legal nature, but also stories about people. There is a conversation "From the other side" with Rita Saulīte, the Judge Emeritus, the former Senator of the Senate Department of Civil Cases, and her granddaughter Evija Veide. There is a photo report about Supreme Court employees' participation in the Nationwide Latvian Song and Dance Festival, as well as about some historic gift from the colleagues of the Supreme Court of Lithuania.

“The Supreme Court Bulletin" is published twice a year. It is sent to Latvian courts and other institutions of the judicial system, libraries and law faculties of universities. The issue No 27 of the Bulletin is still being printed at the printing office, but it is already available electronically on the Court's website.

 

Information prepared by

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

E-mail: rasma.zvejniece@at.gov.lv, telephone: +371 67020396, +371 286522