View source for Law of Lithuania

{{Short description|none}} <!-- "none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]] -->
{{See also|Corruption in Lithuania}}
'''Lithuanian law''' is a part of the [[legal system]] of [[Lithuania]]. It belongs to the  [[civil law (legal system)|civil law legal system]], as opposed to the [[common law]] legal system.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Legal Assistance |url=https://lt.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/attorneys/ |access-date=2024-11-05 |website=U.S. Embassy in Lithuania |language=en-US}}</ref> 
The legal system of Lithuania is based on [[epitome]]s of the [[French law|French]] and [[German law|German]] systems. The Lithuanian legal system is grounded on the principles laid out in the [[Constitution of Lithuania|Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania]] and safeguarded by the [[Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania]]. 

==History==
[[File:Lithuanian Statute I.jpg|thumb|The First [[Statutes of Lithuania|Statute of Lithuania]], 1529]]
The origins of Lithuanian law trace back to the first written source, the [[Casimir Code]] ({{langx|lt|Kazimiero teisynas}}), published in 1468 by the Grand Duke of Lithuania [[Casimir Jagiellon]] with the [[Lithuanian Council of Lords]].  It is considered to be the first [[Codification (law)|codified law]] of the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]]. [[Statutes of Lithuania]], published three times (in 1529, 1566 and 1588) were the most influent [[legal code]]s of Lithuania.  The third variant of the Statute was in force in the territory of Lithuania until 1840 when it got replaced by the Russian laws.  However, under the rule of the [[Russian Empire]], there were three separate [[Civil law (legal system)|civil law]] systems in force in Lithuania: in [[Suvalkija]] the [[Napoleonic Code]] was still applied, whereas the [[German law]] was in force in  [[Klaipėda Region]].

The legal system of independent Lithuania between the World Wars was influenced by the fact that three separate systems of civil law governed various parts of the country, while the autonomous Klaipėda Region had its own legal instruments.  The notable difference from the rest of the state was the possibility of a secular [[civil marriage]] in the 1930s and 1940s.  The drafting of Lithuanian legal codes went on for decades and was not completed until [[World War II]]. During the [[Occupation of the Baltic states|Soviet occupation]], the adapted variation of the [[Soviet law]] was in force in Lithuania.

After regaining of independence in 1990, the largely modified Soviet legal codes were in force for about a decade.  The modern Constitution of Lithuania was adopted on 25 October 1992.  In 2001 the [[Civil Code of Lithuania]] was passed in [[Seimas]].  It was succeeded by the [[Criminal Code]] and [[Criminal Procedure]] Code in 2003.  The approach to the [[criminal law]] is [[inquisitorial]], as opposed to [[Adversarial system|adversarial]]; it is generally characterised by an insistence on formality and rationalisation, as opposed to practicality and informality{{what?|date=March 2023}}.

== Civil and commercial law ==

The civil law and [[commercial law]] is codified in a single legal act - the [[Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania]] [http://www3.lrs.lt/pls/inter3/dokpaieska.showdoc_l?p_id=245495&p_query=&p_tr2=] ({{langx|lt|Lietuvos Respublikos civilinis kodeksas}}) which is in force since 1 July 2001. It is influenced by the civil codes of Quebec and the Netherlands. The commercial law in Lithuania is of an increasingly excellent drafting quality and the market in Lithuanian legal services is now increasingly competitive.

==Legal science==

Legal professionals are prepared and the law is researched in departments of three universities of Lithuania: 
* ''Law Faculty of [[Vilnius University]]'', the oldest, established in 1641 - [[Master of Arts|M.A.]], [[LL.D.]];
* ''Law Faculty of [[Mykolas Romeris University]]'' - [[Bachelor of Arts|B.A.]], [[Master of Arts|M.A.]], [[LL.M.]], [[LL.D.]];
* ''Law School of [[Vytautas Magnus University]]'' - [[LL.M.]]

== Lawyers ==

=== International judges ===

* [[Egidijus Bieliūnas]] - a member of the [[European Commission on Human Rights]];
* [[Danutė Jočienė]] - the first female judge from Lithuania at the [[European Court of Human Rights]] and a [[Docent]] at Vilnius University;
* [[Pranas Kūris]] - a judge at the [[European Court of Justice]];
* [[Mykolas Romeris]] - a progenitor of the Lithuanian [[Constitutional law]] school, judge at the [[Permanent Court of International Justice|Hague Tribunal]];
* [[Vilenas Vadapalas]] - a judge at the [[Court of First Instance]].

=== Prominent lawyers in Lithuania ===

* [[Vytautas Greičius]] - chairman of the [[Supreme Court of the Republic of Lithuania]]
* [[Kęstutis Lapinskas]] - chairman of the [[Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania]]
* [[Valentinas Mikelėnas]] - a former justice at the [[Supreme Court of Lithuania]] and a most prominent Lithuanian civil [[legal science|law scholar]] to date
* [[Vytautas Milius]] - chairman of the [[Court of Appeal of Lithuania]]
* [[Stanisław Narutowicz]] - a signatory of the [[Act of Independence of Lithuania]]
* [[Artūras Paulauskas]] - a former chairman of the Parliament of Lithuania
* [[Mykolas Sleževičius]] - a former [[Prime Minister of Lithuania|prime minister of Lithuania]]
* [[Jokūbas Šernas]] - a signatory to the [[Act of Independence of Lithuania]]
* [[Antanas Tumėnas]] - a former [[minister of justice]] and prime minister of Lithuania
* [[Virgilijus Valančius]] - chairman of the [[Supreme Administrative Court of the Republic of Lithuania]]

== See also ==
* [[Legal systems of the world]]
* '''''<small>{{portal-inline|Law}}</small>'''''
* '''''<small>{{portal-inline|Lithuania}}</small>'''''

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [http://www3.lrs.lt/dokpaieska/forma_e.htm The official database of legal acts of Lithuania] - in the website of Seimas

{{Law of Europe}}

{{Lithuania topics}}

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[[Category:Law of Lithuania| ]]