On 17–18 October 2024, the delegation of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine paid a working visit to Riga, Republic of Latvia, to participate in meetings of judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and judges of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia, as well as representatives of the legal staffs of constitutional courts. This event was supported by the Project “Support to development of the constitutional justice in Ukraine”, implemented within the European Union and Council of Europe Joint Programme “Partnership for Good Governance”, Phase III.
The judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Viktor Gorodovenko (head of the delegation), Vasyl Lemak, Oleg Pervomaiskyi, Oleksandr Petryshyn, Serhiy Riznyk, Olga Sovgyria, Galyna Yurovska, judicial assistants and scientific consultants, as well as representatives of the Secretariat of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine participated in the event.
At the opening of the seminar Vice President of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia Irēna Kucina emphasised: “Each day brings Ukraine and Europe closer to victory. This means that the future Ukraine is approaching – a democratic state governed by the rule of law in the family of European states. The main purpose of our project is shared work for full integration of the Ukrainian legal system in the European Union. Latvia’s experience during last 20 years shows that this path is complex, demands strength and patience. We are pleased to have this opportunity to support our Ukrainian colleagues.”
The head of the Ukrainian delegation, Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Viktor Gorodovenko, expressed his sincere gratitude for the unwavering support of the Ukrainian people provided by the Republic of Latvia since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation. He emphasised that the implementation of the joint project aimed at developing constitutional justice in Ukraine, promoting the exchange of knowledge and experience in applying European standards, taking into account the best practices of European partner courts, has significantly deepened the dialogue between the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia as a court of an EU member state. “In its activities, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine increasingly relies on European standards, its decisions are based on international law documents, the provisions of the EU acts and the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union,” said Viktor Gorodovenko.
Lilit Daneghian-Bossler, Deputy Head of Division of Co-operation Programmes, Department for the Implementation of Human Rights, Justice and Legal Cooperation Standards, Council of Europe Directorate General of Human Rights and Rule of Law, stressed the importance of cooperation between countries. According to her, such professional exchanges contribute to a better understanding of the deeper essence of European and international standards in the field of constitutional justice.
The first session was devoted to the key topic of the role of the constitutional review body in the context of Ukraine's membership in the European Union and NATO. The Latvian and Ukrainian judges discussed how constitutional courts ensure the consistency of national acts with European standards. Judge of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia Jānis Neimanis spoke about the Latvian experience of constitutional interpretation and the challenges Latvia faced in bringing its legislation in line with European standards. Judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Viktor Gorodovenko and Oleksandr Petryshyn shared Ukraine's experience, including the challenges and achievements of Ukraine on its way to the EU.
During the second session, judge of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia Anita Rodiņa and judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Serhiy Riznyk and Olga Sovgyria delivered presentations on the methodology of decision-making in constitutional courts, analysing the methodology of decision-making by the constitutional courts of Latvia and Ukraine, as well as the European experience of postponing the expiration of unconstitutional acts, which has become relevant for Ukraine. During the discussion of this issue, Vasyl Lemak, Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, proposed to apply modern methods of delivering court decisions, which are applied by the Supreme Court of the United States and the State of Israel in their activities when deliberating constitutional issues.
The next day of the meeting, 18 October, was devoted to the application of EU acts and judgments of the EU Court of Justice in the jurisprudence of constitutional courts. Irēna Kucina, Vice President of the Constitutional Court of Latvia, and Galyna Yurovska, Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, delivered their presentations.
The final topic of the meeting was devoted to the further cooperation between the courts. Representatives of both countries stressed the need for further dialogue and exchange of experience.
During the visit, parallel meeting was also held between representatives of the legal staffs of the constitutional courts of both countries.
The discussions were attended by the heads of respective structural units of the Secretariat of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, judicial assistants and consultants, and representatives of the apparatus of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia.
The participants exchanged experience in organising court proceedings, drafting judicial acts, and communicating with the media and the public. They also discussed current judicial practice, in particular, analysed cases related to the activities of political parties, the state language, the separation of powers, and environmental protection.
The parties noted that such professional meetings and constructive dialogues are important for their work.
In addition, on 16 October, a second meeting of the Technical Project Committee was held which was attended by representatives of the Council of Europe, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia and the Constitutional Court of Ukraine. During the meeting, the parties discussed project activities, as well as the exchange of experience and cooperation between the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia.
Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, Chair of the Standing Commission on International Relations Oleg Pervomaiskyi noted that the Project “Support to the Development of Constitutional Justice in Ukraine”, implemented within the framework of the joint EU-Council of Europe Programme “Partnership for Good Governance”, had held eight events for judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, employees of the Secretariat and patronage services of judges to exchange practical experience in the field of constitutional law.
The topics of the roundtables of practical seminars and working group meetings were as follows: key elements of jurisdiction and interpretation of human rights by the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union; content and scope of preliminary examination of applications to the Constitutional Court of Ukraine; protection of personal data in constitutional jurisdiction; methodology for drafting constitutional court acts; methodology for monitoring the execution of decisions of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine; functioning of the electronic system of judicial review.
In conclusion, the delegation of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine extended gratitude to the Council of Europe and the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia for the opportunity to cooperate in order to improve constitutional justice in Ukraine.
