Teismų kompetencijos nacių okupuotoje Lietuvoje klausimu

Abstract

In essence the issue of the competence of courts in Lithuania during the Nazi occupation has not been thoroughly investigated. Therefore this article attempts to clarify the structure and competence of the Lithuanian courts during the years of the Nazi occupation. Upon discussing various decrees related to the work of courts in occupied Lithuania issued by the German civil occupational authorities the following conclusions were made:
1. The competence of courts in Lithuania during the period of Nazi occupation was determined not by the development of the country‟s legal and court system, but by an external factor, Germany, an aggressor state, which tried to gradually integrate its legal system into its own.
2. German courts were introduced in this country and were given the same and sometimes even higher status than of the Lithuanian courts. Judging by various legal acts people of German nationality were considered superior to other residents of this country, and this shows that the legal system in Lithuania was both of discriminating and racial nature.
3. Nevertheless, the fact the occupants allowed the Lithuanian courts to continue their work, even though with restricted competence, made it possible for the officers of these courts to soften as far as possible the occupational regime.