THIRTY YEARS OF THE INTERPRETATION OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA: DIRECTIONS AND THEIR DYNAMICS

Based on the presentation delivered by Danutė Jočienė in the international scientific conference on the occasion of the Day of the Constitution in 2022, this article analyses the official interpretation and application of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania during the 30 years of the functioning of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania. The authors present the three most significant directions (areas) of the interpretative activities of the Court as well as some powerful examples from the official constitutional doctrine widely formed by the Constitutional Court. In this article, the three main directions (or areas) of the official constitutional doctrine are analysed. Firstly, the authors present the official constitutional doctrine reflecting the basis for the functioning of the State of Lithuania and society in general: the understanding of the Constitution as such, the principle of the supremacy of the Constitution, constitutional restrictions for the amendment of the Constitution, the content of the constitutional principles of democracy and rule of law, as well as the constitutional principle of separation of powers. The second direction presented is devoted to the official constitutional doctrine on the constitutional human rights protection system, and the third reflects the official interpretation of the Constitution in light of Lithuania’s international obligations. As regards the constitutional human rights protection system, the Constitutional Court has, among other things, noted that the Constitution is a majoritarian act which protects every individual. The Constitutional Court has clearly recognised in its official constitutional doctrine the natural character of the human rights acquired by every individual by the fact of birth. A lot of attention has been paid to the dignity of a person as a constitutional value. In the third area, the most important principle formed by the Constitutional Court during the years of its activities is the constitutional principle of the ...