Date of the judgment: 17.02.2023.
Official publication: 20.02.2023.
On Complianceof Section 43 (4) of the Civil Procedure Law with the First Sentence of Article 92 of the Satversme of the Republic of Latvia
The Constitutional Court held:
1. To recognise Section 43 (4) of the Civil Procedure Law, insofar it does not envisage the right of a legal person governed by private law to request the court to decide on exempting it from the obligation to pay the State fee for submitting the statement of claim, as being incompatible with the first sentence of Article 92 of the Satversme of the Republic of Latvia and void as of 1 October 2023.
2. With respect to merchant IMEX PROVIDER LTD, registered in the British Virgin Islands, to recognise Section 43 (4) of the Civil Procedure Law, insofar it does not envisage the right of a legal person governed by private law to request the court to decide on exempting it from the obligation to pay the State fee for submitting the statement of claim, as being incompatible with the first sentence of Article 92 of the Satversme of the Republic of Latvia and void as of the moment when the infringement on its fundamental rights occurred.
Press-releases
- The regulation of the Civil Procedure Law, which does not provide for the right of a legal person governed by private law to request exemption from the obligation to pay the State fee for filing a statement of claim, is incompatible with the Constitution
- A case initiated regarding the regulation of the Civil Procedure Law that does not provide for the possibility to decrease the state fee for legal persons or exempt them from paying the fee