Judgements of lower courts can be appealed. Generally there are two stages of appeal in civil proceedings.
In general, human rights do not provide for a right to appeal in all cases and all disputes. However, Lithuanian law allows you to appeal a lower court’s decision in majority of cases except for a few exceptions. Higher courts at all stages of appeal must follow the requirements and guarantees to a fair trial.
Stages of appeal:
After you have received a decision or judgement of the court of first instance (apylinkės teismas), you may appeal it to a higher court within 30 days. In the review process, the court of appeal has the same power to examine your case as the lower court (including disagreements on facts in your case and the application of law). The examination of the appeal case is limited by your complaint. In other words, the court will not examine those aspects of the case that you have not complained about. In a court of appeal, you have the same rights and duties as before a lower court.
A court of appeal’s judgement can be further appealed before a court of cassation: the Supreme Court (Aukščiausiasis Teismas) within 3 months. The court of cassation will not review the facts of your case again. This court will only examine your complaints about a lower court’s mistakes, which are related to the incorrect application of law or violations of procedural rules. These mistakes must be serious enough to have led to a potentially incorrect decision.
Since a court of cassation only deals with complaints about the application or violations of law, the requirements for your access to the court (such as the quality of legal arguments in your submission or court fees) are stricter than in a court of appeals. For example, the appeal must be written and signed by a lawyer. Also there are several categories of cases, for example the so-called “small claims” cases claiming a relatively small amount of money, which are not reviewed by a court of cassation.