Mandatory nature of criminal proceedings in the republic of Latvia: Current issues and controversies

Rıga Stradiņš University, Faculty of Law, Riga, Latvia

Abstract

The Criminal Procedure Law (Section 6), as one of the basic principles of the criminal procedure, provides for the mandatory nature of criminal proceedings. It determines that the official who is authorised to perform criminal proceedings has an obligation within his or her competence to initiate criminal proceedings and to lead such proceedings to the fair regulation of criminal legal relations provided for in The Criminal Law in each case where the reason and grounds for initiating criminal proceedings have become known. This research focuses on issues that relate to the legal aspects of the mandatory nature of criminal proceedings, including the competence of the officials in initiating criminal proceedings; the role of the victim; the purpose of this basic principle. This paper examines the problematic aspects of the mandatory principle in criminal procedure in Latvia. In the end, key conclusions are summarized.