Case Law of the Constitutional Court of Latvia in Reviewing Cases on Family Law
![handle is hein.journals/ijjf9 and id is 7 raw text is:
CASE LAW OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF LATVIA
IN REVIEWING CASES ON FAMILY LAW
by Sanita Osipoval
I. INTRODUCTION
Family is the basis of existence of every society and also a highly conservative
social institution. Traditionally, the State regulates family relations with
moderation, leaving these matters to the society itself. At least this is how it
was in European countries until the early or mid-20th century. Local traditions
and religion have always played an important role in family law. Even after the
Republic of Latvia was founded in 1918, many family matters went on being
regulated by the local customary law.2 It continued this way until 1940, when
the family law of the Soviet Russia was enacted in the territory of Latvia as an
immediate result of the Soviet occupation.3 In this paper, following a brief
historical introduction which will illustrate for the reader how the
understanding of family has evolved in Latvia in the last century, I will
examine the case law of the Constitutional Court regarding family law. The aim
is to identify the fundamental rights connected to family law that the
Constitutional Court has sought to protect during its 20 years of existence, as
well as to examine the impact the Constitutional Court has had on the
development of social values in Latvian society.
II. FOUNDATION OF GENDER EQUALITY IN LATVIA
In the newly established Republic of Latvia, the substantially diverse traditions
that its different regions and social strata followed in setting the limits of a
wife's legal capacity, and especially in regulating the property relations
between spouses, were exactly the reason why it took more than 15 years (from
1 Justice of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia & Professor, Faculty of Law,
University of Latvia (Riga).
2 Vladimirs Bukovskis, Jauna civilkodeksa izstradasanas darbiba [Procedure for devel-
oping the new Civil Code], 1 TIESLIETU MINISTRIJAS VESTNESIS [BULLETIN OF THE MINI-
STRY OF JUSTICE] 32 (1921).
33 Valdis Blnzma, Latvijas inkorporacija PSRS sastava un padomju tiesibu uzspiesana
Latvijai (1940-1941) [Latvian incorporation in Soviet Union and repression of Soviet law
to Latvia (1940-1941)] in LATVIJAS TIESIBU VESTURE (1914-2000) [HISTORY OF LATVIAN
LAw (1914-2000)] 288-95 (D. A. Lebers ed., 2000).
1](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/ijjf9&div=4&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
What Is HeinOnline?
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most
Case Law of the Constitutional Court of Latvia in Reviewing Cases on Family Law
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most