11 March, 2020
On March 11, amendments to the Law “On Judicial Power” and the “Office of the Prosecutor Law” come into force, which changes the procedure for selecting and appointing the Prosecutor General. The Prosecutor General will henceforth be appointed not on the proposal of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, but on the proposal of the Judicial Council.
The Judicial Council evaluates the candidates for the position of the Prosecutor General, selects the most suitable one and proposes the appointment of the candidate to the Saeima (parliament). The Judicial Council will be able to nominate for appointment only a candidate who meets the requirements specified in the Law “On Official Secret”, which must be met in order to receive a special permit for access to a state secret.
The changes envisage expanding the range of candidates for the position of the Prosecutor General, stipulating that a person who has reached the age of 40 and has 15 years of work experience as a judge or prosecutor may also become a candidate for the position of the Prosecutor General.
The Judicial Council has to approve the regulations of the competition for the selection of candidates for the position of the Prosecutor General by April 1, 2020, as well as has to determine the procedure and criteria for the evaluation of candidates. The Judicial Council must submit a proposal for the appointment of the Prosecutor General to the Saeima not later than one month before the expiry of the term of office of the Prosecutor General. The term of office of Prosecutor General Eriks Kalnmeiers expires on July 11.
Information prepared by
Rasma Zvejniece, the Head of the Division of Communication of the Supreme Court
E-mail: rasma.zvejniece@at.gov.lv, telephone: +371 67020396, +371 28652211