Cases on participation of third persons in the civil procedure have been initiated
The First Panel of the Constitutional Court has initiated two cases entitled “On Compliance of the First Sentence of Section 78 (3) of the Criminal Procedure Law with the First Sentence of Article 92 and Article 96 of the Satversme of the Republic of Latvia”.
The first sentence of Article 92 of the Satversme guarantees a person the right to a fair court, whilst Article 96 of the Satversme protects inviolability of person’s private life.
The contested norm of the Civil Procedure Law provides that third persons may enter into a matter before the adjudicating of the matter on the merits has been completed in a court of first instance.
The applicants describe similar situation occurred to them, namely, in their proceedings (a case on divorce and division of joint property, and a case on divorce, division of joint property and recovery of means of support for childcare) the court has adopted a decision to summon credit institutions as third parties in the matters. The applicants indicate that this restricts their right to inviolability of private life, namely, in cases on divorce, domestic life of spouses are usually discussed; therefore such private information, including the information on private life of spouses and children, might be revealed to third persons, which is inadmissible. Moreover, objections of the participants of these cases against entering of third parties into the case were not heard; consequently, their right to a fair court as a proper procedure of adjudication being characteristic for a law-governed State is infringed.
Linked case: 2010-72-01