Judges of the Baltic States discuss judicial efficiency and cooperation with the Court of Justice of the European Union at conference
On Thursday, 26 September, the Deputy Chairperson of the Constitutional Court, Irēna Kucina, attended the annual conference of judges of the Baltic States, moderating the conference session “20 years in the European Union: Interaction of the Baltic Courts with the Court of Justice of the European Union”.
This year’s conference was held in Sigulda, Latvia, and was attended by delegations of Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian court judges at all levels. The conference was divided into three working sessions: the judges presented the challenges of making the work of the courts more efficient, discussed the role of the court of appeal in civil and commercial cases, and discussed the importance of interaction between the courts of the Baltic States and the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Opening the working session, Irēna Kucina stressed that the 2004 enlargement of the European Union was a constitutional moment. The European Union, which the Baltic countries joined, is based on loyalty, cooperation between Member States and the principle of the supremacy of the EU law. At the same time, the European Union recognises the diversity of the national traditions of its Member States. And it is the national courts that have been active in ensuring that the rights enshrined in the EU Treaties are applied in practice and accessible to everyone.
“The courts of the Baltic States have demonstrated their openness to cooperation with the CJEU. In general, the courts of the Baltic States have referred questions to the CJEU on the interpretation of the EU law more than 200 times* – Estonia 44 times, Lithuania 107 times and Latvia 127 times. The cases also raise issues common to the three Baltic States – the Constitutional Court of Latvia and the Constitutional Court of Lithuania have asked questions in comparable cases in the area of common energy markets. The Supreme Court of Latvia (Senate) has examined the fundamental rights of an Estonian citizen after he exercised his right to freedom of movement within the EU. This practice has contributed to the Baltic courts actively applying and protecting the rights of individuals and businesses under the EU legal framework,” concluded Irēna Kucina, underlining the importance of the dialogue between the Baltic courts and the Court of Justice of the European Union.
*Based on data compiled by the CJEU (until 1 May 2024).