NEWS

LCSS Law Institute researcher Agnė Limantė, together with her colleague from the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia), Dr. Neža Pogorelčnik Vogrinc, published a chapter in the international yearbook Balkan Yearbook of European and International Law 2024, titled “Ensuring Child Support: Tendencies in Case Law on Maintenance in Slovenia and Lithuania“.

The study, published by the internationally recognized publisher Springer, presents a comparative analysis of case law on child support in Lithuania and Slovenia, taking into account differences between the two legal systems as well as overarching trends. In their comprehensive review, the researchers also examine key aspects of the child support framework, including the interpretation of legal concepts, principles for calculating the amount of support, and other essential issues arising in the application of child maintenance law.

This research makes a targeted contribution to the broader international discourse on the protection of children's rights and legal decision-making practices within European Union countries.

You can find the link to the chapter prepared by the researchers here.

Researchers Dr Agnė Limantė and PhD candidate Monika Šukytė from the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences, together with Dr Neringa Gaubienė from Vilnius University, have published the first comprehensive academic work in Lithuanian on the opportunities and challenges of applying artificial intelligence (AI) in the judiciary.

The monograph offers an in-depth analysis of various topics related to the use of AI in judicial systems. It introduces readers to the concept and types of artificial intelligence, as well as its application in law enforcement. Drawing on international practices, the publication explores a range of AI tools used in courts – from virtual assistants to generative AI technologies.

A key focus of the monograph is the discussion on how the application of AI in courts can be aligned with fundamental ethical and legal principles – aiming to prevent systemic bias, ensure the right to a fair trial, and protect personal data.

The publication is relevant not only to the academic community but also to judiciary system professionals and policymakers, whose agendas increasingly address issues related to emerging technologies.

The monograph is available here (in Lithuanian).

The monograph was developed and published as part of the TeismAI project, funded by the Research Council of Lithuania (LMTLT), under contract No. S-MIP-23-73.

From June 9 to 11, 2025, Dr Skirmantas Bikelis, a researcher at the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences, broadened the international academic destinations of Lithuanian criminologists by attending the annual Stockholm Criminology Symposium in Sweden.

The symposium impressed the researcher from the very beginning – its opening featured a traditional introductory panel discussion in which the laureates of the symposium, Frances Crook (United Kingdom) and Bryan Stevenson (United States), engaged in conversation with Sweden’s Minister of Justice, Gunnar Strömmer, and the Director of the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention, Jonas Trolle. The discussion focused on juvenile crime prevention in the context of emerging challenges in Sweden. The laureates emphasized a crucial point: children are children, not monsters.

Later, the laureates delivered individual lectures. Frances Crook expanded on the topic of juveniles in the criminal justice system, highlighting the situation in England and Wales – particularly the age of criminal responsibility and the types of institutions in which minors are incarcerated. Bryan Stevenson, drawing on his own experiences, conveyed three key messages to criminologists: to engage directly with the phenomena they study, to distance themselves from misleading narratives that arise from detached analysis, and to maintain hope.

During the symposium, Dr Skirmantas Bikelis presented a paper discussing three approaches adopted in Europe to address the ineffectiveness of criminal prosecution for asset legalization: the German solution, which has been incorporated into the new asset confiscation directive (1260/2024) and allows confiscation proceedings within the criminal process even after the termination of prosecution; the Lithuanian approach, in which, after the termination of prosecution, a civil process is initiated to declare the property ownerless – an approach that has proven to be highly effective in practice; and the Latvian solution, which is highly controversial, as it both lowers the standard of proof for prosecuting money laundering (thereby undermining a fundamental principle of criminal procedure) and permits asset confiscation within criminal proceedings without completing the prosecution for money laundering. This latter option raises concerns regarding the presumption of innocence, as it allows the court to deem the property criminal in origin before a conviction is issued – thus making determinations about the essential elements of a crime the accused is charged with prior to a formal verdict.

On May 15–16, the Faculty of Business Management at VILNIUS TECH hosted the international scientific conference “Business and Management 2025” for the 15th time. The event brought together over 200 participants from 31 countries. Among the presenters this year was Dr. Raimonda Bublienė, a research fellow at the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences. She is currently implementing a postdoctoral research project funded by the Research Council of Lithuania titled „Multiple Discrimination and Labour Income: A Comparative Analysis of Legal Regulations in European Countries” (MEDALIC).

In one of the eight conference sections, “Legal Business Environment”, Dr. Bublienė presented her topic: “Impact of Multiple Discrimination to the Application of the Principle of Equal Pay”. During her presentation, she discussed how the interplay of different forms of discrimination—such as those based on gender, age, ethnic origin, and other grounds—can lead to more complex and often overlooked or difficult-to-prove forms of discrimination.

According to the researcher, the implementation of EU Directive 2023/970 plays a significant role in strengthening the application of the equal pay principle. “To effectively reduce the gender pay gap,” she emphasized, “a comprehensive approach must be taken – one that considers not only gender-based discrimination but also its intersection with other contributing factors.” The presentation concluded with a discussion on the importance of pay transparency systems, which help to better identify and more effectively address complex forms of discrimination in the workplace.

The project is funded by the Research Council of Lithuania (LMTLT), Agreement No. S-PD-24-155.

Photo credit: Vilnius Tech

At the beginning of this month, Dr Ingrida Kerušauskaitė-Palmer, a researcher at the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences and a visiting fellow at the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences at Bournemouth University (United Kingdom), participated in a roundtable discussion focused on analyzing the impact of European migration research.

The event was organized as part of the project "Between vulnerability and resilience: gendering anti-migrant nationalism and migrant responses", funded by the British Council under the "Springboard" program.

Dr I. Kerušauskaitė-Palmer, together with international and local researchers as well as early-career scholars, shared insights and academic experience on how to conduct migration-related research, evaluate its impact, potential outcomes, opportunities, and limitations. During the event, she also actively engaged in networking activities aimed at establishing new collaborative ties with representatives, researchers, and experts from other institutions.

A publication by the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences (LI LCSS) has appeared in the 2025 edition of the International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family, published by Oxford University Press. Dr. Agnė Limantė, a researcher at the LCSS Law Institute, together with Dr. Anna Wysocka-Bar from the Centre for Private International Law at the Faculty of Law of Jagiellonian University, co-authored the article titled “Cross-Border Child Abduction from the UK: Comparative Analysis of Polish and Lithuanian Court Cases”.

In this publication, Dr. Limantė and Dr. Wysocka-Bar examine court cases from Lithuania and Poland that deal with instances of parental child abduction—specifically, situations where one parent, a citizen of either Lithuania or Poland who had been residing in the United Kingdom, returns to their home country with the child(ren) without the other parent’s consent, thereby potentially abducting the child(ren).

The article presents a thorough comparative analysis of judicial practices over a five-year period (2019–2023), focusing on cases directly related to the application and interpretation of the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.

The study identifies the legal procedures courts must follow in determining whether a parental abduction has occurred and in deciding whether the child(ren) should be returned to the United Kingdom, in accordance with the 1980 Hague Convention, the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, and other relevant legal instruments. The authors also present statistical data on such legal violations and conclude with an analysis of key differences between Lithuanian and Polish judicial approaches to cases involving potential parental child abduction.

Publication by A. Limantė and A. Wysocka-Bar.

On April 28, the TeismAI project team from the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences, in cooperation with the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), organized an international online seminar titled "Artificial Intelligence in Courts: Challenges and Opportunities", dedicated to judges and other court staff from both the CJEU and the Lithuanian court system. The seminar, which gathered over 140 participants, focused on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in judicial processes, trends in the adoption of AI tools, as well as the opportunities and challenges associated with their use.

During the seminar, Dr. Agnė Limantė, a senior researcher from the TeismAI project, delivered a presentation titled "AI in Courts Around the Globe: Current Uses and Future Perspectives", providing an overview of AI applications and usage trends across different countries worldwide. Guest speaker Dr. Miglė Laukytė (Pompeu Fabra University, Spain) presented on "AI and Judicial Independence", discussing the legal challenges emerging from the application of AI tools in courts. The head of the TeismAI project, Dr. Monika Žalnieriūtė, concluded the session with her presentation "AI and Judicial Accountability", building upon the insights shared by her colleagues while emphasizing solutions to address the challenges posed by the integration of AI in judicial settings. The seminar concluded with an active discussion between judges, court staff, and the presenters.

Project „Artificial Intelligence in Courts: Challenges and Opportunities“ (TeismAI) is funded by the Research Council of Lithuania (LMTLT), Grant Agreement No. S-MIP-23-73.

Every year, members of the Prison Working Group of the European Society of Criminology gather to discuss the latest research findings and develop ideas for joint projects. This year’s meeting took place in the springtime city of Timișoara, Romania, and brought together more than 30 prison researchers from various countries. Among the participants were representatives from the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences – Senior Research Fellow Dr. Rūta Vaičiūnienė and Goda Dainauskaitė.

This year’s meeting stood out from previous ones – for the first time in the history of the working group, the event was hosted in a correctional facility. During the meeting, held on April 10–11, 2025, researchers, PhD students, and representatives of NGOs from Romania, Norway, Denmark, Greenland, Belgium, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Israel, Switzerland, and Austria presented their most recent research findings.

The conference featured wide-ranging discussions on topics such as human rights challenges within prison systems, strategies for correctional officers, the role of social workers and chaplains in prisons and their integration into prison staff, the experiences of marginalized social groups in places of detention, and issues related to parenting while incarcerated. Topics particularly relevant to Lithuania were also addressed, including the significance of prison architecture and environment, and the prospects for developing small-scale prison facilities and halfway houses.

Several prison-based programs were also presented during the conference. A Danish researcher introduced a dog training program implemented in prisons and discussed its impact on inmates. Meanwhile, PhD students from Leiden University in the Netherlands led a session on food in prison, providing an overview of prison meal systems – from traditional cafeterias to community-based cooking models.

The second day of the meeting was dedicated to a visit to Timișoara Prison. Correctional officers guided the guests through various parts of the facility, including prisoner living quarters, recreation rooms, the chapel, family meeting areas, and the kitchen. Participants also had the opportunity to sample the meals served to prisoners.

The unique prison setting – with limited access to communication devices and a complete detachment from the outside world – fostered deeper engagement in academic discussions and exploration of new opportunities for collaboration. The environment proved to be a productive space not only for sharing research ideas but also for initiating new international partnerships and discussing possibilities for internships and joint project development.

Dr. Agnė Limantė and PhD candidate Monika Šukytė, researchers at the Law Institute of the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences, have published a new academic article titled "Comparative Insights and Future Directions of AI in the Courts of the Baltic States". In this work, the authors provide an in-depth practical analysis of the processes involving the application of artificial intelligence (AI) within the judicial systems of the Baltic States, while also outlining possible future directions for AI development in this field.

To achieve the aims of the study, the authors analyzed publicly available data, legislation, and academic literature, and conducted interviews with ten experts from all three Baltic countries. The interviewees included judges, representatives of court administrations, and academics. The interviews followed a set of guidelines covering topics such as AI use cases, human rights protection, transparency and accountability, public perception, professional training, and emerging trends.

The research revealed that, currently, AI in the courts of the Baltic States is primarily used for auxiliary, technical tasks. However, looking forward, there is an expectation that AI applications will expand into more complex areas involving judicial decision-making. The study also emphasizes the importance of mandatory initial and continuous training for court personnel on AI capabilities, risks, and implementation prospects. In addition to these insights, the article discusses further opportunities for AI integration and offers recommendations on its development—focusing on digitalization, efficiency, transparency, and alignment with fundamental legal and ethical principles.

You can find this scholarly article here.