Juridica International

Dear reader

2025-12-30T08:52:34+00:00

Dear reader,

Since its establishment, Juridica International has served as a distinctive forum for scholarly engagement with Estonian law in a broader European and international context. Originating as an international counterpart to the Estonian-language Juridica, the journal’s mission has undergone considerable evolution. Today, Juridica International is a well-established peer-reviewed law journal that combines rigorous doctrinal analysis with openness to comparative, interdisciplinary, and forward-looking legal research. At the same time, it continues to fulfil its core function: providing analytically grounded insight into developments within the Estonian legal order for an international readership.

This dual orientation is closely linked to the role of the Faculty of Law of the University of Tartu. As the leading centre of legal scholarship in Estonia, the Faculty has long shaped national legal discourse through research, teaching, and engagement with legal practice. Juridica International forms an integral part of this institutional framework. It offers a platform where debates on Estonian law are articulated in a manner that meets international academic standards and invites dialogue beyond national borders. In this sense, the journal not only reflects legal developments but actively contributes to the formation and critical assessment of Estonian law within the wider European legal space.

The present volume continues this established direction. The contributions span a broad range of legal fields and approaches, yet several thematic clusters emerge. A number of articles address questions of private law and procedural justice, focusing on principles such as good faith, efficiency, and legal certainty, while examining the evolving balance between party autonomy and the court’s role in civil proceedings.

Another group of contributions engages with public law and regulatory frameworks, particularly where national legislation intersects with European Union law. Public procurement serves as a focal point in this respect, highlighting the tensions between discretion, proportionality, and regulatory constraints in the national implementation of EU directives, as well as the practical consequences of legislative design choices.

Technological development and digitalisation constitute a further prominent theme. Several articles analyse how artificial intelligence, digital procedures, and technology-driven transactions challenge established legal concepts. These contributions critically assess whether existing liability, insurance, and intellectual property frameworks remain adequate in an increasingly automated and data-driven environment.

Issues of criminal law and human rights also feature prominently. Questions concerning punishment, detention, and state power are examined in light of constitutional guarantees and international legal standards, highlighting the interaction between security considerations, human dignity, and the limits of lawful state intervention.
Taken together, the articles in this volume demonstrate Juridica International’s continued commitment to analytical depth, doctrinal precision, and critical inquiry. They illustrate how Estonian legal scholarship engages simultaneously with domestic legal challenges and broader European and international debates. Juridica International thus remains a key forum through which the Faculty of Law of the University of Tartu upholds and advances informed, internationally relevant discussion of Estonian law, while contributing meaningfully to global legal scholarship.

How to Patch a Gap? The Legal Regime of Internment in Armed Conflict in Eastern Ukraine: Domestic Approach

2025-12-30T09:10:05+00:00

International Humanitarian Law (IHL) offers various instruments enabling parties involved in armed conflicts to maintain order in occupied territories, with one of the most significant being internment. While this practice is well-regulated and explicitly authorised in international armed conflicts (IAC), the authorisation of internment in non-international armed conflicts (NIAC) presents legal challenges.

The NIAC in Eastern Ukraine exemplifies how Ukraine attempted to address a gap in IHL regulations by turning to domestic law. However, the normative framework applicable to NIAC, which includes IHL, International Human Rights Law (IHRL), and domestic law, raises questions regarding their intersection. This article illustrates how the preventive detention implemented by Ukraine was designed to function as a distant ‘relative’ of traditional internment under IHL. It also examines how Ukrainian authorities sought to align their IHRL obligations with the context of the NIAC in Eastern Ukraine by amending national legislation.

The article concludes that domestic law serves as the main source for justifying internment in NIAC, given the scope of state jurisdiction. Neither IHL nor IHRL can be utilised to provide a legal ground to intern individuals in NIAC. Domestic law, being a ground for internment in NIAC, even under derogations, shall comply with the standards established by IHRL.

Good Faith in Civil Procedure: The Latvian Experience

2025-12-30T09:17:37+00:00

Civil procedure has traditionally been viewed as a means of resolving disputes between two parties, with the court providing a formal framework for the proceedings, focusing primarily on delivering a judgment and leaving the conduct of procedural activities largely at the parties’ discretion. This article provides insights into the regulation in Latvia, which establishes the obligation of good faith and truthfulness in civil proceedings, and examines Latvia’s experience in identifying procedural abuses in case law at all three judicial levels. As constitutional values have gained importance and the concept of the right to a fair trial has evolved, our understanding of civil procedure is gradually changing; it must serve not only the protection of the parties’ subjective interests but also the common good of society, with the court playing a more active role in ensuring a fair trial. These developments call for a shift in the approach to how parties’ rights are exercised and enforced, as well as for strengthening the court’s role—an evolution highlighted by procedural law reforms in European countries. Considering over 200 publicly available rulings of Latvian courts, the article categorises the most common instances of procedural abuse and violations of the obligation to tell the truth. The final section addresses the court’s role in promoting and ensuring compliance with the duty of good faith.

Streamlining Corporate Mergers and Divisions of Limited Liability Companies in Estonia: Exploring the Simplified Proceedings and Waiver of Waiting Periods

2025-12-30T09:20:32+00:00

Corporate mergers and divisions are governed by extensive regulations and numerous restrictions designed to protect the interests of various stakeholders. However, these restrictions often render mergers and divisions less appealing to shareholders and fail to adequately safeguard their rights. This paper aims to analyse the existing simplified procedures and exceptions and their impact on the mergers and divisions of limited liability companies in Estonia. Additionally, it examines the potential waiver of the so-called waiting periods associated with corporate mergers and divisions.

While the primary focus is on the interaction between Estonian, German, and EU law, the findings may also be relevant to other countries due to the partially harmonised EU regulations on corporate mergers and divisions. The analysis concludes that the current exceptions and exemptions do not achieve their full intended purpose. Furthermore, although it is possible to waive the waiting period related to information rights, the waiting period imposed for declaring a merger or division resolution null and void cannot be waived.

Disproportionate Restrictions on the Exercise of Discretion concerning Public Procurement Instruments under Estonian Legislation

2025-12-30T09:30:06+00:00

This article examines the restrictive boundaries of discretion imposed by Estonian public procurement law in comparison to EU directives, highlighting the contradictions, interpretative errors, and regulatory gaps that complicate and challenge the work of Estonian procurers. The topic is significant because public procurement constitutes a substantial share of public expenditure and serves as a key mechanism for ensuring efficiency, competition, and the coherent application of EU internal market rules. The main questions addressed include whether Estonian enforcement disproportionally restricts EU-provided discretion and whether those restrictions conflict with the directive’s objectives. The study offers a critical assessment and proposes legislative guidelines. It concludes that current Estonian regulation and administrative interpretation often narrow the discretion intended by EU law, suggesting the need for legislative amendments or interpretative clarification to restore consistency and improve the effective use of procurement instruments.

Assignment or Licence? Regulating Authors’ Economic Rights in Public Contracts

2025-12-30T09:34:43+00:00

This article analyses the allocation of authors’ economic rights in public contracts under EU and Estonian law, with particular focus on the choice between assignment and licensing of copyright in public procurement. EU public procurement law does not harmonise the regulation of intellectual property rights, leaving contracting authorities wide discretion and resulting in divergent contractual practices. Drawing on doctrinal analysis and a case study of Estonian public contracts concluded between 2022 and 2024, including design contests and innovation partnerships, the article examines how economic rights are regulated in practice.

The analysis shows a strong preference for assignment of economic rights, frequently combined with contractual clauses characteristic of licensing. This hybrid approach enables contracting authorities to secure extensive control while shifting legal and financial risks onto tenderers and authors, particularly in relation to remuneration, liability, and third-party infringement. The article argues that such practices are often inconsistent with the legal logic of copyright assignment. It concludes that licensing, especially exclusive licensing, can in many procurement contexts provide a more proportionate and legally coherent alternative, ensuring functional control, fair remuneration, and balanced risk allocation.

Artificial Intelligence and Non-Contractual Liability: Will the Insurance System Replace the Tort System in the Future? An example of autonomous vehicles

2025-12-30T09:37:55+00:00

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, particularly in the development of autonomous vehicles, presents a fundamental shift in the distribution of liability for traffic accidents. This article examines the future of non-contractual liability in the context of fully autonomous vehicles and explores whether the insurance system could eventually replace traditional tort-based liability frameworks. It analyses the classification of vehicle autonomy levels, the specific risks posed by autonomous systems (software failures, hacking, etc.), and discusses who may be held liable under existing and proposed EU regulations. Particular attention is given to the applicability of the Motor Insurance Directive (MID), the limits of civil liability in different Member States, and the feasibility of introducing compulsory cyber or producer liability insurance. The authors argue against the fragmentation of liability systems and propose that existing motor third-party liability insurance frameworks be adapted to encompass the new risks presented by autonomous technologies. Such an approach would avoid the creation of parallel compensation systems and ensure consistent victim protection throughout the EU.

Digitale Gläubigerversammlungen im deutschen Insolvenzverfahren unter Berücksichtigung europäischer Entwicklungen

2025-12-30T09:41:22+00:00

Neben der zunehmenden Digitalisierung des deutschen Zivilprozesses im Bereich des elektronischen Rechtsverkehrs und der verpflichtenden Einführung der elektronischen Akte bei den Gerichten ab dem 01.01.2026 hat der deutsche Gesetzgeber am 18.07.2024 § 128a ZPO zur Förderung des Einsatzes von Videokonferenztechnik grundlegend reformiert. Über die Verweisungsnorm in § 4 S. 2 InsO ist § 128a ZPO auf digitale Gläubigerversammlungen im Insolvenzverfahren anwendbar. Trotz der Novellierung des § 128a ZPO, der primär für den kontradiktorischen Zwei-Parteien-Prozess im Zivilverfahren konzipiert ist, bleibt dessen Anwendung auf Gläubigerversammlungen problematisch.

Dieser Aufsatz bekräftigt die Auffassung, dass aufgrund der Besonderheiten des Insolvenzverfahrens eine eigenständige Regelung für virtuelle Gläubigerversammlungen in der Insolvenzordnung erforderlich ist. Diese könnte sich an den detaillierten Vorschriften für virtuelle Hauptversammlungen im Aktienrecht orientieren. Ferner wird die Einrichtung eines zentralen Insolvenzportals zur Durchführung digitaler Gläubigerversammlungen betrachtet, das zur Minimierung technischer Schwierigkeiten sowie als unabdingbares Merkmal moderner Insolvenzverfahren zu begrüßen ist.

Da die nationalen Bemühungen zur Förderung des Einsatzes von Videokonferenztechnik auch die europäischen Entwicklungen berücksichtigen sollten, werden entsprechende europäische Regelungen für grenzüberschreitende Videoverhandlungen in der Verordnung (EU) 2023/2844 dargestellt.

Unfit for Punishment Due to Mental Disorder? The Challenge of Defining Fitness to Serve a Prison Sentence in Estonia

2025-12-30T09:44:22+00:00

Mental disorder poses particular challenges in determining fitness to serve a custodial sentence, yet in Estonian law, the concept remains legally undefined. Although proceedings may be terminated or the execution of a sentence deferred in cases of serious illness, the absence of clear criteria undermines legal certainty and shifts undue responsibility to medical experts. Drawing on legal analysis and neuropsychological insight, this article proposes four conceptual levels of fitness, ranging from physical survival to moral comprehension. Case law and scientific literature reveal that current regulation is structurally and substantively deficient, creating a risk that Estonia will violate constitutional and human rights guarantees by punishing those whose mental condition renders them unfit to serve their sentence.