When the President of the Republic appointed him to serve as a Justice of the Constitutional Court on 10 December 2014, the expectations were considerable. The ten-year term of office, which he completed yesterday, proved that those expectations were fully met.

David Uhlíř took up his post with reputation of an experienced attorney at law. No wonder; he was an attorney for almost thirty years. He started at the Legal Advice Bureau No. 2 in Prague, founded his own law firm in 1994 and came to the Constitutional Court as Vice-Chair of the Board of the Czech Bar Association. 

He was never shy to reveal that Otakar Motejl, whose approach to law and people he adopted, was his legal mentor and personal friend. That is why in his cases he clearly distinguished between the good and the evil, drew attention to nonsensical formalism and often asked ethical questions, because in legal briefs he did not see only paragraphs, but above all human fates.   

During last ten years, he was a Justice-Rapporteur in a total of 2,915 Panel proceedings and 33 Plenum proceedings. He did not like hasty decisions and, thanks to his calm nature, was able to work with other Justices to agree on the best possible course of action. He reserved a resounding “no” only when it came to principal issues of value that he considered fundamental. 

David Uhlíř is leaving not only as a great lawyer and expert in civil law, but also as a very valuable member of the judicial team. Thanks to his language skills, he often represented the Constitutional Court on international scene, where he gained valuable contacts and appraisal. However, he was also willing to talk to students and anyone who wanted to learn more about constitutional justice. It may seem a bit “strange” when a Justice is referred to as popular, but David Uhlíř was indeed popular – among colleagues, among co-workers, among students. Not only for his insight, rhetorical mastery and philanthropy, but above all else because he hated hypocrisy and remained genuine. 

It was an honour for the Constitutional Court to have such a Justice, and it was an honour for me personally to work alongside him. On behalf of the Justices and employees, I would like to thank David Uhlíř for his ten years of service to justice.

Vlastimil Göttinger
Secretary General 
 

Photo: Vladimír Novotný