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Estonia · Law · SE

854

Courts and Other Laws Amendment Act (Expediting Court Proceedings)

avaldatud riigiteatajasEstonia· Riigikogu· ET

Introduced

19 March 2026

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AVALDATUD_RIIGITEATAJAS

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Source updated

17 June 2026

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Summary

The purpose of the bill is to speed up the court proceedings. To this end, changes will be made in four areas: court order, civil court proceedings, administrative court proceedings and court fees. For simpler cases, the simple procedure will be extended so that they can be resolved more quickly. For example, in case of a simpler litigation, a decision can be made in the district court by one judge instead of three. Disputes over procedural costs are also reduced because of the rules for contesting costs will be made clearer and more limited. Major changes will be made to the judicial system to make the judicial system more independent and efficient. From now on, all court levels will be considered constitutional institutions, and a separate budget will be created for them in the state budget. The strategic management of the court system will be directed by the Council of Courts, which includes 6 judges and 5 members from outside the court system. The daily support services of the courts will be consolidated by a new one court administration service. The development and management of the court information system is placed under the control of the court system itself. In civil court proceedings, the limit for simple proceedings will be raised from EUR 3,500 to EUR 5,000, and with ancillary claims from EUR 7,000 to EUR 10,000, which will enable more disputes to be resolved more quickly. In some non-lawyer proceedings, one district judge will decide appeals against the order instead of three. For better protection of consumers, changes related to consumer credit are made claims processing. This means that only the principal debt and statutory interest and late payment can be claimed in the fast payment order procedure. In administrative court proceedings, in clear cases, the court can make a decision already in preliminary proceedings without a hearing. In order to speed up disputes related to renewable energy projects, a preliminary procedure deadline of three months is established so that important developments do not get stuck behind litigation. State fee rates for court proceedings will begin take more into account the actual procedural costs of the courts. In civil matters, fees will increase on average, and in administrative matters, the general state fee will rise from 20 euros to 75 euros. The possibility of procedural assistance remains available for less well-off people. Applicants for international protection are exempt from the state fee. Technology also helps speed up the work of the courts. Courts are allowed to use artificially generated court records, which reduces manual recording time. Will be increased specialization of judges so that more complex cases can be resolved faster and with higher quality. Narrower areas of specialization are stipulated in all branches of law, for example family and guardianship matters, insolvency and corporate law matters, labor law and intimate partner violence matters. The system of people's judges will be abolished, which simplifies the formation of court panels and speeds up the processing of criminal cases.

Machine translation from Estonian. The official text remains authoritative.

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