Prof. Dr. Gediminas Mesonis (09. 11. 1968 – 26. 07. 2022)
Member of the Editorial Board of the journal “Logos”, Laureate of the Pranas Dovydaitis Award

The Lithuanian community of legal scholars, judges and lawyers has lost one of the most prominent experts in Constitutional Law, a legal scholar of exceptional erudition and a wide-ranging outlook, a philosopher of Law, a researcher in Law, a professor of Mykolas Romeris University, a habilitated Doctor of Social Sciences, and a Judge of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania, Gediminas Mesonis. It is a very painful loss for all those who knew him, worked with him, and learned from him. Prof. Dr. G. Mesonis was born in 1968 in Vilnius. Having graduated from the Faculty of Physics at Vilnius Pedagogical Institute, he later studied law and was awarded a Bachelor's degree in Law and in 1998 a Master's degree in Law. He continued his legal studies and furthered his knowledge in Philadelphia (United States of America) under the Fulbright programme. In 2000 he defended his doctoral dissertation in the field of Law entitled "The Form of Governance in Lithuania: A Comparative Aspect in the Context of Central and Eastern Europe". During his distinguished academic career, Prof. Dr. G. Mesonis taught at the Faculty of Law of Vilnius University and Vytautas Magnus University. He was a professor of Mykolas Romeris University for many years, Director of the University Study Centre, and Head of the Constitutional Law Department. In addition, Prof. Dr. G. Mesonis has been a visiting professor at Charles University in Prague (Czech Republic), Inholand University Rotterdam (Netherlands), University of Cologne (Germany), University of Athens (Greece), Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn-Rhine (Germany), the University of Minho (Portugal), University of Brescia (Italy), Masaryk University Brno (Czech Republic), Christian Albrechts University Kiel (Germany), Utrecht University (Netherlands), University of Paris Panthéon-Assas 2, Faculty of Law, Centre for Constitutional and Political Sciences (France). On the proposal of G. Kryževičius, the Chairman of the Supreme Court of Lithuania, and by the Resolution of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, Prof. Dr. G. Mesonis was appointed a Judge of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania on March 15, 2011. Prof. G. Mesonis held this position for almost ten years, until January 14, 2021. After completing his term of office as a Judge of the Constitutional Court, Prof. Dr. G. Mesonis, in view of his professional and personal qualities, high morals, sense of duty and integrity, was nominated by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Lithuania of February 1, 2021, for appointment as a member of the Selection Commission for Chief Prosecutors. The academic achievements, scientific works and accumulated professional experience of Prof. Dr. Gediminas Mesonis have been recognised with one of the highest awards of the Republic of Lithuania - the Officer's Cross of the Order of the Grand Duke Gediminas of Lithuania. It was awarded to Prof. G. Mesonis on the occasion of the Restoration of Lithuania Independence Day on February 16, 2022, in recognition of his work in strengthening of the constitutional justice in Lithuania and the upholding of constitutional values. The list of professor’s accomplishments reveals his infinite diligence and talent. In all areas of his work, he has left a distinctive and memorable imprint. Thus, in the memory of all those who knew him - judges, lawyers, students, and legal scholars - the Constitutional Court Judge Prof. Dr. Gediminas Mesonis will remain a respected and beloved colleague, a friendly and understanding advisor, sharing his wisdom and philosophical view of the world, a witty and always optimistic interlocutor. His rich academic heritage, extraordinary thoughts, and legal insights will accompany future generations of lawyers and judges.

Prof. Dr. Darijus Beinoravičius
Mykolas Romeris University