Minister of Justice Edvards Smiltēns resigns from office; prime minister's order published in the official gazette

Edvards Smiltēns resigns from the position of Minister of Justice — this is determined by Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-320 “On the resignation of Edvards Smiltēns from the position of Minister of Justice”. The notice was published in “Latvijas Vēstnesis”, November 6, 2026, No. 215, official publication issue OP 2026/215, in the “Cabinet of Ministers” section under the heading “Prime Minister”, as item 4. The issuer is the Prime Minister, and the document type is an order published in the state official publication.

The resignation order is part of a set of Prime Minister’s orders issued on the same day: the numbers in the issue run sequentially from -318 to -320. Consequently, the matter of the Minister of Justice appears in the official publication in the same publication that also reflects the government’s regular agenda — the meeting minutes and personnel decisions.

Position of the Order in the November 6 Issue

• Item 1 — Minutes of the Cabinet of Ministers extraordinary meeting by way of poll, Cabinet of Ministers Meeting Minutes No. 61.
• Item 2 — On granting leave to Hosam Abu Meri, Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-318.
• Item 3 — On the business trip of Baiba Braže, Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-319.
• Item 4 — On the resignation of Edvards Smiltēns from the position of Minister of Justice, Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-320.

Minister’s Schedule Before Resignation

A few days before the resignation order, Edvards Smiltēns appears in the official publication as the minister in office, for whom Prime Minister’s orders regarding business trips were issued.

• Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-261 “On the business trip of Edvards Smiltēns” — published in OP 2026/158, August 19, 2026.
• Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-268 — amendment to Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-261 of August 18, 2026, published in OP 2026/161, August 24, 2026.
• Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-276 “On the business trip of Edvards Smiltēns” — published in OP 2026/175, September 11, 2026.
• Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-315 “On the business trip of Edvards Smiltēns” — published in OP 2026/211, November 2, 2026.

The activities of the justice sector during this period are also documented by sectoral decisions: Ministry of Justice Decision No. 1-4.1/117 “On the price list of paid services of the Prison Administration” published in OP 2026/172, September 8, 2026.

Practice of Resignation Orders

The Minister of Justice’s order was published using the wording “resignation”, which differs from other government personnel decisions published in the issues this autumn.

• Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-286 titled “On the dismissal of the Minister of Welfare” was published in OP 2026/177 on September 15, 2026.
• In both cases, the issuer of the instrument is the Prime Minister, and the decision was published in “Latvijas Vēstnesis” as an official notice regarding changes in the composition of the government.

What the official notice currently does not include

The published entry contains the title, number, and issue of the order; the grounds for resignation, the effective date, and information regarding the person performing the duties are not reflected in this publication. Regarding further steps — a new minister, the distribution of duties, or corrections to the work priorities of the Ministry of Justice — official information will be provided in subsequent issues of “Latvijas Vēstnesis”.

The change of minister affects the area of state legal system and judicial system administration; therefore, readers following the decisions made in this sector should also monitor subsequent Prime Minister and Ministry of Justice documents with new signatories. This notice is the first official confirmation of the change in office.

Official source: “Latvijas Vēstnesis”, November 6, 2026, No. 215, official publication issue OP 2026/215, section “Cabinet of Ministers”, “Prime Minister”, point 4 — Prime Minister’s Order No. 2026/1.2.1.-320 “On the resignation of Edvards Smiltēns from the office of Minister of Justice”. Available at: https://www.vestnesis.lv/url/17026?content=1