Chief justice criticizes administration of justice practices.
Postimees Digest, Tuesday, June 11
11th June 2013, 13:52
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Outgoing Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Märt Rask has pointed to problems with fair administration of justice in the Tartu Courthouse arising from the fact that judges and prosecutors are free to mingle as both the prosecution and the first and second instance courts occupy the same building. Rask said that it has by now led to a situation where judges do not even bother to question prosecutors during trials. The chief justice said that such aggregate courthouses lead to administration of justice neither being nor seeming objective and that he admits it is a mistake he made as justice minister at the time of the building's construction. The paper has heard complaints before of how judges shun defense lawyers but approve almost all applications by the prosecution in Tartu.