Lithuanian law is a part of thelegal system ofLithuania. It belongs to thecivil law legal system, as opposed to thecommon law legal system.[1] The legal system of Lithuania is based onepitomes of theFrench andGerman systems. The Lithuanian legal system is grounded on the principles laid out in theConstitution of the Republic of Lithuania and safeguarded by theConstitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania.
The origins of Lithuanian law trace back to the first written source, theCasimir Code (Lithuanian:Kazimiero teisynas), published in 1468 by the Grand Duke of LithuaniaCasimir Jagiellon with theLithuanian Council of Lords. It is considered to be the firstcodified law of theGrand Duchy of Lithuania.Statutes of Lithuania, published three times (in 1529, 1566 and 1588) were the most influentlegal codes 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 theRussian Empire, there were three separatecivil law systems in force in Lithuania: inSuvalkija theNapoleonic Code was still applied, whereas theGerman law was in force inKlaipėda 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 secularcivil marriage in the 1930s and 1940s. The drafting of Lithuanian legal codes went on for decades and was not completed untilWorld War II. During theSoviet occupation, the adapted variation of theSoviet 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 theCivil Code of Lithuania was passed inSeimas. It was succeeded by theCriminal Code andCriminal Procedure Code in 2003. The approach to thecriminal law isinquisitorial, as opposed toadversarial; it is generally characterised by an insistence on formality and rationalisation, as opposed to practicality and informality[clarification needed].
The civil law andcommercial law is codified in a single legal act - theCivil Code of the Republic of Lithuania[1] (Lithuanian: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 professionals are prepared and the law is researched in departments of three universities of Lithuania:
