About the national database

Logo of Lithuanian legislative website

Description

Parliament

The Seimas ­is the Lithuanian Parliament. Its website explains:

  • how it functions
  • its history
  • members and political groupings
  • committees and commissions
  • public and international relations
  • access to laws.

Online law

Lithuanian law online – full text of the Lithuanian laws, in English, including:

  • legal acts adopted by Seimas and subordinate institutions, national government, municipalities, courts, and many other institutions
  • 1992 Lithuanian Constitution
  • Civil Code & Labour Code

English translations are not often available for other codes, or for amendments and supplements.

Publications

  • Legal acts from 1993 onwards are officially published in the Valstybės žinios (Official Gazette).
  • The Publishing House of the Seimas publishes a collection of Lithuanian legal documents – Lietuvos Respublikos Seimo dokumentų rinkinys (1991- ) – which includes basic laws, Presidential decrees, and the rulings and decisions of the Constitutional Court, and non-regulatory acts of the Seimas (eg. resolutions) and resolutions of the Board of the Seimas.
  • Acts of law regulating activities of the banks of Lithuania – published 3 times a year by the Bank of Lithuania and currently available to subscribers.

Types of law

  • Constitution (Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucija) – adopted by citizens of the Republic of Lithuania in the Referendum of 25 October 1992; came into force on 2 November 1992.
  • Constitutional laws (konstitucinis įstatymas)
  • Laws (įstatymas)
  • Resolutions (nutarimas) of the Seimas (the Parliament) and Government (Vyriausybė)
  • Presidential Decrees (dekretas)
  • Orders/Acts (įsakymas, aktas, etc.) of other governmental institutions and local municipal authorities.

In the Lithuanian legal system, the principal body of law is statutory. Substantive branches of the Law are codified in codes.