17th November 2016
On 8 November, Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania enacted the amendments of the Law on Equal Treatment that introduce the highest standards of independence for the equality body in Lithuania. Amendments were initiated by the Office of Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson. The main changes include competence requirement for the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson and clearly regulated hitherto unregulated Ombudsperson’s impartiality and independence.
The amended law foresees that the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson must obtain university master degree in law. The required period of professional experience – service in legal profession or at state and municipal institutions or agencies – is increased from five to ten years. Such amendment aligns requirements for competence of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson with requirements for other Ombudspersons in Lithuania appointed by Parliament.
The unlimited number of terms of office is repealed. To ensure Ombudsperson’s impartiality and independence the law provides a limited number of terms of office. The same person cannot be appointed as the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson for more than two successive 5-year terms of office. Moreover, before swearing an oath to the State of Lithuania the person must halt his/hers participation in a political party till the end of his/hers term of office. Breach of oath is additionally included to the list of reasons to release the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson from office.
In addition, amended law equalizes time limits for complaint investigation with time limits for investigations of other Ombudspersons in Lithuania. A complaint must be investigated and a reply must be given to the complainant within three months from the day of receipt of the complaint (one month was provided in prior law’s version). If Ombudsperson refuses to examine the complaint, it must be returned to the complainant not later than within 10 days (15 days were provided in prior law’s version).