Mr. Zigmants Gencs is the chair of the Department of Civil Cases.
The Department of Civil Cases consists of following Senators: Ms. Anda Briede, Ms. Inara Garda, Mr. Valerijans Jonikans, Mr. Aldis Lavins, Ms. Skaidrite Lodzina, Mr. Kalvis Torgans, Ms. Edite Vernusa, Ms. Anda Vitola, Ms. Marite Zagere.
The Department of Civil Cases of the Senate in accordance with standards of the Civil Procedure Law reviews:
- cassation complaints and cassation protests on judgments and supplementary judgments of appellate instance courts;
- protests of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Chairman of the Department of Civil Cases of the Senate or the General Prosecutor filed under the procedure of Article 483 of the Civil Procedure Law, on the first instance court rulings if they have come into effect and have not been appealed due to reasons beyond the control of participants of the case, or the rights of the state or municipal institutions, or of the persons who had not been participants of the case, have been infringed;
- in the cases stated in Section 55 of the Civil Procedure Law, ancillary complaints on decisions adopted by regional courts or the Chamber of Civil Cases;
- under the procedure stipulated in Section 59 of the Civil Procedure Law, applications on initiation of cases due to newly discovered circumstances. According to the amendments of May 22, 2008, to the Civil Procedure Law, a ruling of the European Court of Human Rights or another international or transnational court in a case stating that the proceedings have to be renewed is also acknowledged as newly discovered circumstances.
A judgment of an appellate instance court may be appealed under the procedure of cassation if the court has erroneously applied or interpreted a standard of the substantive law, violated a procedural law standard, or when reviewing a case, has exceeded its scope of competence.
The issue on initiation of cassation proceedings is decided by the Panel of three Senators in the assignments sitting (Article 464 of the Civil Procedure Law). With verdict of assignments sitting, according to Paragraph 4641 of the Civil Procedure Law it can be left to initiate cassation proceedings. The following may serve as grounds to decline initiation of cassation proceedings:
- the cassation complaint does not comply with the requirements of Articles 450 – 454 of the Civil Procedure Law;
- the judgments of the Senate in similar cases have established case law, and the judgment of the appellate instance court complies with it;
- no doubts arise regarding the lawfulness of the appellate instance court judgment, and the particular case is not significant for the development of the case law.
With unanimous decision of Senate collegium a case may be passed over to be reviewed in an expanded composition of the Senate. In the assignments sitting the Panel of Senators may also adopt decisions on the matter of rejection to accept the filed ancillary complaint and other procedural issues, as well as pass a decision to submit the issue on adoption of a prejudicial ruling to the Court of the European Community, or to file an application to the Satversmes (Constitutional) Court regarding the compliance of the law standards with the Satversme (Constitution) or an international law standard.
If a three-senator court hearing a case fails to reach a unanimous opinion, or if all the senators consider that the case should be heard in full court, the court refers the case to the Senate for hearing in full court.
According to Article 474 of the Civil Procedure Law, the Department of Civil Cases after reviewing a case may adopt one of the following adjudications:
- to leave the judgment unchanged, and to decline the complaint;
- to revoke the judgment in full or in a part and to remand the case for new reviewing in the appellate instance or the first instance court;
- to revoke the judgment in full or in a part and to leave the application without reviewing, or to terminate proceedings in case if the second instance court has not followed the regulations of Articles 219 or 223 of the said law;
- to change the judgment in the part regarding the amount of the claim if it has not been determined correctly by erroneous application of a standard of the substantial law.
In civil cases, the judgment is announced. After the senators’ meeting, the chairman of the session in the court room announces the judgment, reading its operative part, and states the time when the participants of the case may read the full text of the judgment. If the senators acknowledge that it is not possible to adopt a judgment in this court session, the next court session is announced within 14 days during which the senators announce the judgment.
The judgment of the Senate may not be appealed, and it becomes effective from the moment of its announcement.
According to amendments made in the Civil Procedure Law on February 5, 2009, senator, who, while reviewing case in fullcourt, had different opinion on translation or application of the law, has rights within 15 days, after full text of judgement has been composed, to express his/her single opinion in written form, and they have been written in the case.
The Department of Civil Cases hears also ancillary complains on decisions adopted by regional courts or the Chamber of the Court. When reviewing an ancillary complaint, the Department of Civil Cases verifies the lawfulness and validity of the appealed decision, and adopts one of the following rulings:
- to leave the decision unchanged, and to decline the complaint;
- to revoke the decision in full or in a part and to remand the case for new reviewing to the court which had passed the decision;
- to revoke the decision in full or in a part, and by its decision to decide the matter on the merits;
- to change the decision.
Verdict of the Department of Civil Cases made regarding ancillary appeal may not be appealed.
Ancillary appeals have been reviewed in court sessions, but, in cases stated in the Civil Procedure Law – in written proceedings. Also applications on newly discovered facts have been reviewed in written proceedings, as it is stated in Law issued by Saeima on February 5, 2009 „Amendments in the Civil Procedure Law”.
