Legal disputes can be settled both out of court and in court. In both cases, you may involve specialists in the Estonian legal system who are familiar with the legal system: lawyers, advocates, notaries, and others.
Settlement of disputes out of court
If the dispute was not settled with negotiations, you may want to involve lawyer or advocate. They know the legal system in detail, help protect your interests, and find the compromises you need. In addition, you may agree with the other party to settle the dispute out of court, either through a conciliation procedure or in arbitration court.
Notarial contract with a compulsory enforcement clause
If you have, for example, entered into a notarial contract and the resulting financial obligation has become enforceable, the debtor must give separate consent after the due date that they will be liable for immediate compulsory enforcement for that financial claim to be enforceable. If the contract has been entered into before 31 December 2005 and the debtor has agreed to compulsory enforcement in the contract, no separate consent is required and the bailiff can be contacted immediately for compulsory enforcement. The debtor’s consent is also not required if the subjection to compulsory enforcement is entered in the land register with the mortgage entry or if the subject of the contract is a maintenance claim.
Conciliation procedure
The conciliation procedure is an out-of-court dispute settlement procedure in which the parties choose a mediator or appeal to the Conciliation Body. The conciliator may be a notary, a sworn advocate, or another person designated by the parties to the dispute. The conciliation procedure can also be carried out by a state or local government conciliation body, such as the copyright committee. It may also propose its own solution as an advisor, but the final decision-making power remains with the parties.
The conciliation procedure is also appropriate for settling insurance disputes. There is an insurance conciliation body within the Estonian Insurance Association, through which impartial insurance mediators operate. Members of the Estonian Insurance Association have given their consent to participate in the conciliation procedure in the event of an insurance dispute. It is up to each individual to approach the conciliation body to choose which of the conciliators will commence conciliation. Settlement of the dispute through an insurance conciliator is free of charge.
The agreement resulting from the conciliation procedure is binding on the parties. For the conciliation agreement certified by a notary or a sworn advocate to be enforceable, it is necessary to apply to another notary for certification of the agreement or to a court for the additional recognition of the agreement. Agreements approved by the state or local government conciliation body are enforceable. An agreement approved by another conciliator must be first declared enforceable by the court in order for it to be enforceable.
Arbitration procedure
The arbitration procedure is also an alternative means of dispute settlement. As the composition of the arbitration court is determined by the parties, they can be assured of the knowledge, experience, and impartiality of the arbitrators. In addition, the parties have the right to choose the language of the proceedings, the applicable law, and the rules of proceedings. The arbitration court may be one-off or permanent. The Arbitration Court of the Chamber of Notaries and the Arbitration Court of the Estonian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (EKTK) act as permanent arbitrators. Disputes arising from international economic relations are often settled by the Arbitration Court of EKTK. The decision of the arbitration court is binding on the parties and final, i.e. the dispute cannot be referred to the courts.
In order to be enforceable, an arbitration court judgment must be previously declared enforceable by the court. The judgments of the Arbitration Courts of the EKTK and the Chamber of Notaries are enforceable without the need for a declaration of enforceability.
Advantages of conciliation and arbitration procedures
Unlike national public judicial proceedings, the settlement of disputes by conciliation or arbitration is confidential. The proceedings are faster and the costs lower.
Judicial proceedings
If the parties do not wish to settle the dispute out of court, the claim can be brought to court. Estonia has a three-level court system:
- Civil, criminal, and misdemeanour matters are decided by the county courts as the court of first instance. Administrative cases are heard by administrative courts as courts of first instance.
- Circuit courts are courts of second instance which, on the basis of appeals, review decisions of the courts of first instance.
- The Supreme Court is the highest court which reviews cases on the basis of cassation. The Supreme Court is also the constitutional review court.
The proper documents must be submitted to the court and the state fee must be paid. Judicial proceedings can be initiated in civil and administrative proceedings and, in all types of proceedings, the procedural documents can be submitted electronically via the e-File portal. The application for an urgent payment order (for debt up to EUR 8,000) can only be submitted electronically via the e-File portal. The portal can be accessed with an ID-card or Mobile-ID and the submitted application must be digitally signed.
In the e-File, it is possible to:
- institute judicial proceedings in civil and administrative matters;
- pay a state fee for a procedural act;
- see the proceedings and procedural documents relating to you, including decisions;
- submit procedural documents to the court in all types of proceedings;
- accept documents sent by the body conducting proceedings, including summons and court decisions;
- appeal court decisions;
- monitor the progress of proceedings related to you.
You can represent yourself or choose a representative (e.g. lawyer, sworn advocate) to represent you in a court action. If you have chosen a representative, they may be present at the trial alone or with you. If the court decides in your favour but the other party does not voluntarily comply with the judgment, you can apply for compulsory enforcement to the bailiff. Information on execution proceedings and contact details for bailiffs can be found on the website of the Chamber of Bailiffs and Trustees in Bankruptcy. The rulings of Estonian courts can also be executed in other European Union members states, as well as in Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland (the Lugano Convention member states). Whether or not the rulings of Estonian courts can be executed in any third countries depends on the law of the country where the specific Estonian court ruling would be executed. Judgments can be found on the Riigi Teataja portal.
Expenses
In conciliation procedures, the parties are required to pay a previously agreed conciliation fee and the costs of the conciliation procedure. A state fee of EUR 50 shall be paid for an application for a declaration of enforceability of a conciliation agreement. The notary’s fee for certifying the conciliation agreement is EUR 51.13.
The arbitration shall be subject to payment of previously agreed fees for the arbitrators and the costs related to the arbitration. Unless otherwise agreed, costs are divided equally between the parties. A state fee of EUR 50 shall be paid for an application for a declaration of enforceability of an court judgment.
The expenses of the judicial proceedings depend on a number of factors, such as who the representative is, how long the judicial proceeding takes, what the cost of the civil case is, how many court instances are involved, etc. As the court will normally order the unsuccessful party to pay the procedural expenses, the possible procedural expenses of both parties must also be taken into consideration.
The notary fees are determined by the Notary Fees Act and the bailiffs’ fees are determined by the Bailiffs Act. The state fee rates are fixed in the State Fees Act.
References
- Estonian Court System
- Dispute with the insurer
- Estonian Bar Association
- European e-Justice Portal
- European Court of Human Rights
Services
- e-File - court procedure information system (e-Toimik)
- Execution proceedings commenced against a debtor
Laws
- Conciliation Act
- Code of Civil Procedure
- Constitutional Review Court Procedure Act
- Law of Obligations Act
- Code of Criminal Procedure
- Code of Misdemeanour Procedure
- Code of Enforcement Procedure
- Bailiffs Act
- Code of Administrative Court Procedure
- State Fees Act
- Notary Fees Act