This week, Minister of Justice Inese Lībiņa-Egnere and Prime Minister Evika Siliņa discussed the priorities of the justice sector in 2025. The Ministry of Justice will strengthen the rule of law in a safe, prosperous, Latvian and inclusive Latvia, working on issues related to the protection of children's best interests, reducing the administrative burden in the field of real estate and company registration, strengthening the internal security and penal enforcement system, as well as support for Ukraine.
Child-friendly justice
One of the main priorities of the Minister of Justice in 2025 will be the development of a child-friendly justice system, which is also in line with the priority announced by the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister on demographic and family support measures. In order to create a child-friendly legal environment in family disputes and divorce cases, the Ministry of Justice will prepare proposals to reduce child retraumatisation and institutional violence without involving children in repetitive processes and procedural actions.
The Ministry of Justice will continue its efforts to reduce the criminalisation of children and young people by redirecting them towards educational coercive measures and support measures. The Ministry of Justice is currently working on the establishment of a Children and Youth Home service for high-risk adolescents. However, a temporary service will be launched in cooperation with the foundation "Allaži Child and Family Support Centre" from March this year. In cooperation with the Latvian SOS Children's Villages Association, an individual rehabilitation programme is being provided for children with high behavioural risks. The aim is to prevent the risk to health and life and to return the adolescent to everyday life and society.
Strengthening the internal security and penal enforcement system
A transition to a new penal enforcement system will be initiated, with a greater emphasis on modern infrastructure and re-socialisation measures to reduce recidivism and strengthen public safety. The new Liepaja Prison will be the most modern and secure prison in the Baltics. It will accommodate 1 200 prisoners. The first inmates are expected to arrive in spring 2026. To prepare staff for the new Liepaja Prison, the Training Centre of the Prison Administration will be opened in January, providing a training environment and infrastructure appropriate for the new resocialisation system.
Reducing administrative burden in real estate and company registration processes
In order to reduce the administrative burden in the field of real estate registration, a unified building registration service will be improved to make it simpler, faster and more convenient as from 1 January 2026. The solution will allow the alignment of construction information systems, cadastre and land registry data and the exchange of data between these systems.
In order to improve the investment environment and reduce the administrative burden for entrepreneurs, the processes in the Register of Enterprises are also being further streamlined. The new service portal will be further developed, gradually automating the steps of the registration process, which will also reduce the time spent on registration in the future.
Support to Ukraine and the international legal order
Condemning Russia's full-scale war of aggression in Ukraine and supporting Ukraine, the Ministry of Justice will continue to work at both national and international level to isolate Russia, strengthen the international sanctions system, establish an international reparation mechanism for victims and push for the creation of a special tribunal to prosecute those responsible for war crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine.
The Ministry of Justice also plans to step up cooperation with Estonia and Lithuania on the restoration of the international rule of law, for example, to start more detailed coordination on support measures for Ukraine, ensuring Russia's accountability, multilateral negotiations, etc.