The work of the Supreme Court is managed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, nominated by the Plenary Session from among the Judges in office and appointed by the Saeima for seven years.
The Chief Justice may be dismissed from office by the Saeima prior to expiry of the term, upon the recommendation of the Judicial Disciplinary Committee, on the basis of an opinion of the Plenary Session of the Supreme Court.
Article 50 and 501 of the Law On Judicial Power sets forth the authority of the Chief Justice with regard to the operations of the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice:
- presides over a Plenary Session of the Supreme Court, and he has right to participate in reviewing of cases in the Senate;
- calls sessions of the Chairmen of departments of the Senate of the Supreme Court, in which question submitted by judge or court about subordination of case has been observed, with vote participates in these sessions and manages them;
- engages and dismisses the Head of the Administration of the Supreme Court.
The Chief Justice may not instruct a judge about hearing a particular case, or request information or reports from a judge concerning a heard case and opinions expressed during drafting a judgment.
The authority of the Chief Justice includes directing and solving the questions related to judicial composition of the Supreme Court. The Chair of the Supreme Court:
- submits to the Board of Justice recommendations on a total number of judges in the Senate and Chambers of the Supreme Court;
- nominates for affirmation in Saeima candidates to a post of judge of the Supreme Court;
- establishes procedure of selection, training and delivery of a qualification examination of candidates on a post of the judge of the Supreme Court;
- after the affirmation of the judge of the Supreme Court in a post, appoints the structural unit of the Supreme Court, in which the given judge will fulfil his/her duties;
- expresses the recommendation on appointment of the senator of other Department of the Senate or the judge of an appellate court for a post of the senator and with a vote participates in general session of senators of the Department of the Senate, in which this question is observed;
- submits in Saeima offers on dismissal of judges of the Supreme Court from a post and in the cases provided by the law dismisses the judge;
- In case of vacancy or temporary absent of the judge of the Senate, instructs the Honorary Judge or the judge of the Chamber of the Supreme Court to replace the senator;
- submits to the Board of Justice recommendations about judges of regional courts, who are to be instructed to replace the senator of the Department of Administrative Cases of the Senate or the judge of the Chamber in case of vacancy or temporary absence;
- appoints the judge of the Supreme Court to certain term for work in other establishment;
In the law On Judicial power the authority of the Chief Justice of the questions concerning not only the Supreme Court, but also all judicial system of Latvia is included. The Chairman of the Supreme Court:
- manages the Board of Justice;
- after the coordination with the Minister of Justice establishes an order of selection and processing of the information included in a jurisprudence database;
- can submit inquiry to the Committee of Judicial Ethics to draw the conclusion about interpretation and infringements of norms of ethics;
- as the adviser can participate in sessions of Judicial Qualification Committee.
The authority of the Chief Justice is stated also by other laws.
- In the Judicial Disciplinary Liability Law, there have been established rights of the Chief Justice to initiate a disciplinary case in all cases determined in the law, about judges of all courts;
- The Chief Justice advises the Saeima on appointment to office of the Prosecutor General, and deals with other matters from the Law on the Office of the Prosecutor associated with appointment, withdrawal, or dismissal of the Prosecutor General;
- Under the Law on Advocacy, the Law on Bailiffs, and the Law on Notaries, the Chief Justice accepts the oaths of advocates, bailiffs, and notaries on taking up their duties;
- According to article 483 of the Civil Procedure law, the Chairman of the Supreme Court can submit to the Senate the protest by the come into force the judgment of the court. The protest can be submitted, if essential infringements of material or a legal procedure in cases, which have been reviewed only in court of the first instance, are established, and judgment had not been appealed against in the order established by the law for the reasons which are not dependent on participants of the case, or judgment affects rights of the state or municipal enterprises, or the rights of those persons which were not participants of the case. The protest can be submitted, if from the moment, since judgment has come into force, more than 10 years have not passed;
- According to item 4 of Paragraph 7 of the Investigatory Operations Law it is stated that the Chief Justice or judge of the Supreme Court, especially authorised by it, gives accept to measures of operational activity spent in a special way – the control of correspondence, reception of the information from technical means, confidential interception of non-public conversations and operational penetration.
