| Abstract [eng] |
This master's thesis analyzes the regulation of political party financing in the Republic of Lithuania and related legal disputes. The topic is revealed by analyzing specific laws regulating the sources and conditions of political party financing and case law, which examines aspects related to financing issues. The work reveals the concept of political parties, analyzing it through a political scientific and legal perspective, revealing that from a political scientific perspective, political forces, on the one hand, are understood as associations with principled ideas, and on the other hand, as elite groups seeking benefits for their members and supporters, while from a legal perspective, political parties are understood as public legal entities, the establishment, operation and especially the financing that is part of the latter, are subject to specific requirements. Analyzing the regulation of political party financing reveals that state budget appropriations are one of the most important parts of the financing mechanism of political parties, so in order to secure this state-provided financing, political parties must not only gain the trust of voters during elections, but also not commit gross violations. The work also discusses private financing of political parties through membership fees, donations from individuals and other sources. An examination of the practice of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Administrative Court of Lithuania, the Supreme Court of Lithuania and the Supreme Election Commission reveals that when assessing violations committed by political parties, it is necessary to adhere to constitutional principles in each case and, when imposing sanctions, apply sanctions proportional to the violation. When examining criminal cases regarding the most serious violations of political party financing, it is emphasized that criminal liability is threatened not only for individuals who have committed them for the benefit of political parties, but also for political parties themselves as legal entities. |
