24/01/2014 (Agence Europe) - Latvia before the Court on nationality requirement for notaries. On Thursday 23 January, the European Commission decided to refer Latvia to the Court of Justice of the European Union because it allows only Latvian nationals to take up and practise the profession of notary. The Court of Justice already ruled in May 2011 that such nationality requirements are contrary to the principle of freedom of establishment, and that the activities of notaries are not covered by an exception under Article 51 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU concerning activities linked to public authority. (LC/transl.fl)