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The aim of the e‐Justice strategy is to improve the implementation of the right to justice, cooperation between judicial authorities and the effectiveness of justice itself. Much attention has been paid to the computerization of court proceedings. Remote court hearings were recognized and described in the legal acts of the European Union and Lithuania already at the beginning of the second decade of the 21st century. However, this approach has not been widely used due to technical problems and insufficient regulation. The Covid‐19 pandemic affected all life and the economy. In order to preserve the human right to justice, not to interrupt the work of courts, remote court hearings were held. It has been found that in administrative justice, especially when organizing the work of quasi‐judicial structures, such hearings can be applied almost without problems. Therefore, the organization of remote meetings in administrative courts and quasi‐judicial organizations was continued during the non‐ quarantine year, depending on the wishes of the participants in the proceedings. However, the widespread use of teleconferencing and videoconferencing in the work of courts has identified the need to improve Lithuania’s legal framework. The article analyses the peculiarities of remote administrative procedure and legal regulation.
</abstract>

Actual Issues of Remote Court Hearings in Administrative Procedure

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International education is crucial in Europe; almost all higher educational institutions (HEIs) have international students studying part or full time in English. However, students are often not prepared for the academic process and are not always interculturally competent to study in the international environment. Authors of the present research suppose that apart from communicative language competence, that is vital for the success of studies, learners are expected to possess knowledge and skills on how to study and how to cooperate with students with other cultural backgrounds. The study aims at investigating what academic requirements students as HEI applicants should be prepared for before entrance to the university and what competences, as a result, are required of them for a successful process of studies. Theoretical findings on academic and intercultural competences are presented and the framework of these competences describing skills, abilities and knowledge is compiled. The empirical research includes a case study in Latvia and examples of intercultural competence in the academic environment in Moldova. Insights from theory and the framework may lay background for future research and may benefit different stakeholders of the HEI − international department, students and the academic personnel.
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Academic and Intercultural Competences of International Students in Higher Education

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The practice of the last few years shows a significant increase in the number of consumer applications to public authorities for protection of their violated rights. As the main guarantor of consumer protection in the field of public administration, the State Consumer Rights Protection Authority bears a heavy administrative burden as a result. Consumer surveys show that they are indifferent to their rights, both in terms of their content and their protection. On the other hand, rules of civil procedure designed to ensure the right of access to a court are not an appropriate guarantor of public interest for consumers due to their complexity. As a consequence of all these circumstances, the current legal mechanism for consumer rights protection does not ensure a prompt and efficient process.
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Procedural Mechanism for the Implementation of Public Interest in the Context of Consumer Rights Protection

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The Latvian Group of Companies Law focuses on creditor and minority shareholder protection and is less concerned with pursuing the interest of the group. This research paper will look at the regulation of group of companies in Latvia. It will question whether the interest of the group is effectively recognised in the Latvian Group of Companies Law. The methodology used will be that of legal doctrinal and comparative research, legal theory method and reform agenda research. The research paper will conclude that creditor protection under Article 27, paragraph 5 of Group of Companies Law (Koncernu likums) is ineffective.
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The Recognition of the Interest of the Group in Latvian Group of Companies Law

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The paper presents results on establishment and development of Information and Communication Technologies Laboratory at Turiba University. The aim of the laboratory is to provide IT department students the possibility to study and gain practical skills on the development and operation of digitally controlled devices which is currently one of the mainstream technologies in modern society. The paper provides an analysis of typical tasks which are in demand while developing digitally controlled devices, and describes laboratory equipment targeted to meet necessary requirements. The main aims of the laboratory establishment as well as the equipment used and skills which could be acquired with the use of this equipment are described. The students’ projects implemented with the use of laboratory equipment in the Spring semester of 2022 are also described in this paper. All the equipment developed along with other laboratory facility are practically used to improve both knowledge and practical skills of the IT department students, which can help them to be more competitive at the labour market after graduation.
</abstract>

Information and Communication Technologies Laboratory of Turiba University

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The goal of this research is to examine the advantages and limitations of compulsory family mediation (CFM) as well as to understand subjective experience and attitude towards CFM from the perspective of family dispute resolution practitioners in Australia. The qualitative research method was chosen for this research. Information was collected using the semi‐structured interview method. The data analysis method was based on inductive thematic analysis. In completion of the data analysis, 4 main themes were identified: CFM is better option for conflict resolution, limitations caused by factors outside of the process, mediators create safe space to process disputes &amp; emotions, the benefits of CMF on mediators. Findings of this study suggest that the practice of CFM is worth being embraced and that there are benefits to be had from an increased use of compulsory family mediation, both for families and legal system in Australia. The practitioners are optimistic of compulsory family mediation, which they believe will enhance society’s quality of life. CFM also has benefited mediators’ personal lives by strengthening their personal values and beliefs, and how they perform their jobs as family mediators.
</abstract>

Family Dispute Resolution Practitioners’ Subjective Experience and Attitude on Compulsory Family Mediation in Australia

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The Covid‐19 pandemic plunged the whole world into a protracted economic crisis, dealing a significant blow to all branches of human activity. Some areas have suffered serious losses, in particular, the tourism industry. This article discusses measures to restore and strengthen the tourism and hospitality sector after the pandemic in the Republic of Uzbekistan. A Safe Tourism program has been developed in the Republic of Uzbekistan; tourists will use tourist services, follow the sanitary and hygienic rules during trips. This project will provide travelling individually, choosing a destination and booking what they need during travelling online.
The purpose of the article is to analyse the situation in the world and Uzbekistan as well, during the pandemic, as well as to develop practical measures to rehabilitate the tourism sector from the consequences of the economic crisis associated with the pandemic. New offers are being considered in the tourism market to attract tourists to our country. The primary attention in the paper is focused on the development of electronic platforms for the formation of "online tourism", architectural sights and monuments combining the history of different peoples and religious denominations. The article also provides information about alternative medicine, and lists of several of treatment methods used by our ancestors and actual nowadays. The report summarizes some of the study results, concluding that the tourism business of Uzbekistan needs to radically rethink existing business models through innovation and digitalization of tourism. Examples of the development of such market segments as agro and eco‐tourism are given. This segments are currently beginning to develop and are of interest to tourists. It is mentioned that Uzbekistan is among the top 10 countries in terms of security.
</abstract>

Influence of the Covid‐19 Pandemic on the Development of Tourism and Measures of Creating Sustainable Tourism in Uzbekistan

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The spread of digital technology and the convergence of computer and communication devices have changed the way people communicate, do important jobs, and so on. However, this digital age has also opened up a wide range of possibilities of using computer technology for criminal purposes. Therefore, the purpose of this research paper is to specify the main problems of legal regulation and case law of criminal liability for cybercrimes in Lithuanian law. So, the analysis was based on three main questions: the difficulties in legal regulation of cybercrimes in Lithuanian criminal law; the problematic relation between cybercrimes and other related crimes as well as the problems of applying some composition features of cybercrimes in Lithuanian case law. The research was carried out by employing the logical, the systematic, the linguistic, the historical, the comparative and the synthesizing research methods as well as the analysis of legal documents. The analysis shows that the legal regulation of criminal liability for cybercrimes in Lithuanian law has considerable problematics compared to international standards, as well as some composition features of cybercrimes are inappropriate for their application in practice and there many problems with ratio between this kind of crimes and similar crimes in Lithuanian case law.
</abstract>

The Challenges of the Digital Age: The Problems of Criminal Liability for Cybercrimes in Lithuanian Law

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More than 30 years have passed since Latvia gained its independence, however, systematic studies of present‐day relationship between media and politics are still missing. Latvia is a country where choice of media is largely determined by ethnicity. Representatives from ethnic groups acquire their daily information from different news sources, as the result the trust levels in media depend on the media format and the language of choice. This study adds to the literature by studying the perceptions of Latvian Members of Parliament on media agenda‐setting power. Drawing on surveys of Latvian parliamentarians, the agenda‐setting power of media is assessed and compared to the survey results in Finland. The results reveal that politicians in Latvia and in Finland think that, in general, media have a massive influence on politics, but the power of written press in Latvia is less evident. And although MPs acknowledge that media can have a significant influence on how decisions are made, the greatest impact will be observed during political debates that can be covered by the media. This study also demonstrates that even though Latvia scores high in the world press freedom ranks, MPs do not trust the media to a large extent and that can be a dangerous signal for the functioning of democracy. The results offer valuable information about the influence of media in countries outside Western Europe and provide a basis for further discussions on surveys as a method for studying the power of media agenda‐setting.
</abstract>

Fragmented and Yet Influential: MPs’ Perceptions on the Media in Latvia

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Nowadays, experiential marketing is of great interest to researchers and practitioners. The use of experiential marketing helps to promote brands, because consumers take into account the experience when choosing a particular brand, product, service. Experiential marketing, which involves concepts such as satisfaction and loyalty, can influence the recommendation messages that customers distribute.
With the rapid development of social media communication, the amount of recommendation messages in the Internet environment has also increased. This is also very relevant in the field of higher education. It is on social networks that loyal foreign students can share their impressions and experiences with other potential foreign students about Latvian universities and Latvia as a destination for higher education, thus becoming distributors of marketing messages.
The aim of the research is to investigate how the experience of foreign students studying at a university in Latvia is reflected in their communication on social networks, and what is its connection with the formation of loyalty. Research methods: survey, descriptive analysis technique crosstabs, T‐Test.
The study concludes that foreign message publishers have a higher average level of loyalty to the country of study than those who do not engage in such social network communication, as well as a higher average level of loyalty to their university. The potential of the recommendations in this group is quite high, and it can be used to promote the recognition of the country as an educational destination and its universities.
</abstract>

Experiential Marketing in Communication of Loyal Foreign Students on Social Networks

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The last two decades have seen a huge technological development, also known as the technology explosion, making it easier for anyone to access any kind of information, including of course intellectual property, anywhere in the world, and this has created new challenges for the protection of intellectual property. But nowadays, technology not only allows access to any work of authorship or invention, it is also capable of creating works of authorship or inventions itself, leading legal scholars to debate whether works created by technology can be protected if they are not human‐made. As is well known, almost all national laws only recognise an author or inventor if it is a human‐made work, but what about a painting or invention created by artificial intelligence? Are such works becoming vulnerable and freely available to everyone today? The methodological basis of this article is based on general scientific approaches (analysis and synthesis, deduction and induction, comparison, analogy and a systemic and structural‐functional approach). The article also draws on court decisions, legislation, legal literature, publications and doctrine. Conclusions are drawn using the method of scientific induction and deduction. The aim of this article is to explain the importance of intellectual property protection in today's technological age, where intellectual property can be created not only by people but also by technology.
</abstract>

The Role of Intellectual Property Rights in the Technological Age

AHEAD OF PRINT

Volume 14 (2023): Issue 1 (September 2023)

Volume 13 (2022): Issue 1 (December 2022)

ACTA PROSPERITATIS

ACTA PROSPERITATIS (ISSN 1691-6077) is a peer-reviewed, international journal that publishes high-quality, original research across the entire spectrum of the social sciences. It was founded in 2010 and published in Latvia.  ACTA PROSPERITATIS publishes:   Original Research Communications, describing important new discoveries or further developments in important fields of investigation;  Review Articles, mainly focused on new developing areas;  Special Themed Issues on relevant topics.  All papers should demonstrate a high level of novelty, originality and uniqueness.   ACTA PROSPERITATIS is a multidisciplinary journal. The multidisciplinary approach involves drawing knowledge from several disciplines, supplementary to one another, to address a given problem in such a manner that it is possible to draw clear-cut conclusions in a specific research field. Our vision is to provide a platform for the development of academic and research collaboration in the following areas:   Social Science and Humanities: Sociology, Tourism Management, Public Administration, Psychology, Philosophy, Law, Political Science, Education, Media and Communication, etc.;  Business and Economics: Business and Marketing, Economics, Financial Development, Accounting, Banking, Management, Human Resource Management, Quality Management, etc.;  Engineering Science and Technology: Technology and Innovation, Applied Sciences, Rural Development, Urban Studies, Artificial Intelligence, etc.  ACTA PROSPERITATIS is open to all researchers and their multiple fields of discipline. This journal offers a dynamic platform for researchers, innovators, scholars and students to share their research worldwide and encourage academic discussion.  Archiving  Sciendo archives the contents of this journal in Portico - digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections.  Plagiarism Policy  The editorial board is participating in a growing community of Similarity Check System's users in order to ensure that the content published is original and trustworthy. Similarity Check is a medium that allows for comprehensive manuscripts screening, aimed to eliminate plagiarism and provide a high standard and quality peer-review process. 