The three-day experience-sharing visit of the German Federal Social Court to the Supreme Court of Latvia, organized by the Senate’s Department of Administrative Cases, has concluded. Through conversations, presentations, and discussions, both sides exchanged valuable insights and experience on addressing social law issues and on effective court organization.

Discussions between the German delegation and the Department of Administrative Cases were structured as exchanges of experience, with each side presenting its national practice. For the session on social law cases, both sides had selected ten significant cases from their respective jurisdictions.

The discussion on cooperation with the Court of Justice of the European Union also included presentations from the Latvian side by Anita Zikmane, Head of the Division of Case-law and Research of the Supreme Court; Inga Bērtaite, Legal Research Counsel of the Senate’s Department of Administrative Cases and currently a national expert at the Court of Justice of the European Union; and Viktorija Soņeca, Legal Research Counsel of the Senate’s Department of Civil Cases, who has previously served as Director of the Court of Justice of the European Union Department at the Ministry of Justice of Latvia and as a trainee in the Cabinet of CJEU Judge Ineta Ziemele.

Additional discussions with staff of the Supreme Court Administration focused on the use of artificial intelligence tools in courts and communication with the public. The work of the Division of Case-law and Research was also presented.

The German judges, together with representatives of the Supreme Court, visited the Constitutional Court, where discussions addressed social law cases from a constitutional perspective.

The concluding discussion at the Supreme Court focused on judicial ethics and Latvia’s experience in developing the Code of Judicial Ethics. Current and former members of the Judicial Ethics Commission, Dzintra Amerika and Līga Biksiniece-Martinova, also took part.

In closing, Anita Kovaļevska, Chair of the Senate’s Department of Administrative Cases, emphasized that, as European Union member states, Latvia and Germany benefit from comparing their approaches to applying EU law and cooperating with the Court of Justice of the European Union. She noted that discussions on shared contemporary challenges, including the use of artificial intelligence in courts, were particularly valuable. Both countries see opportunities to improve judicial efficiency through such tools, while ensuring respect for human rights and the fairness of judicial decisions.

The delegation of the German Federal Social Court also included judges from the Social Courts of Duisburg and Hamburg. The visit continued the cooperation initiated last year, when representatives of the Senate’s Department of Administrative Cases participated in a study visit to Germany. 

 

Information prepared by

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

E-mail: rasma.zvejniece@at.gov.lv, telephone: +371 67020396, +371 28652211