On 12 October, the President of the Constitutional Court met with the Portuguese Ambassador to the Czech Republic. His Excellency Luís de Almeida Sampaio has been the head of the Portuguese Embassy in Prague since 2019 and has visited the Constitutional Court in the past. For the first time, however, he met with Josef Baxa, who has been presiding over the Constitutional Court since August this year and whose appointment to the office of the President of the Court marks the beginning of the Constitutional Court's imaginary fourth decade.

The topic of the visit included questions on current developments in the field of constitutional justice as well as questions concerning the past thirty years, during which the irreplaceability of the Constitutional Court in protecting the rule of law, human rights and democratic governance has been repeatedly confirmed.

Josef Baxa emphasized that the Constitutional Court has long enjoyed great public confidence, which stems, among other things, from its strict adherence to the principles of independence and impartiality of decision-making and its consistent approach to fulfilling the role of a guardian of constitutionality. He stressed that, bearing this in mind, he has been approaching his new position with deep humility and responsibility. He also appreciated the fact that the continuity of the work of the Court was maintained, even though the Court has been undergoing a major turnover of its members. He concluded by expressing his conviction that the fourth decade of Justices of the Constitutional Court would continue the conscientious work of their predecessors and would diligently fulfil the duties assigned to them by the constitutional order of the Czech Republic.  

Before the end of the visit, His Excellency saw the renovated Grand Council Room, the front wall of which is newly decorated with the text of the Constitution of the Czech Republic.

Pavel Dvořák
Head of External Relations and Protocol Department