OREANDA-NEWS. December 11, 2013. The management board of the Estonian Bar Association has appointed Karin Madisson, partner and head of the SORAINEN Corporate Advisory Team in Estonia, to lead the newly established Business Law Committee. Allar Joks, partner with law firm SORAINEN, was elected to the Bar’s Fundamental Rights Committee.

The Estonian Bar Association is creating expert groups to better serve the organisation and the public by utilising its members’ experience.

Karin Madisson notes: “I am glad that the Bar Association aims to contribute more to shaping the business law environment as most attorneys in today’s legal services’ market are engaged in business law issues in one way or another. In our work, we frequently confront situations where parties have no substantive dispute but are tackling problems caused by multiple possible interpretations of the law. Legal gaps and controversies are then overcome by targeted court practice, but the cost of this is unfortunately borne by the client. Outdated regulations in need of modernisation are also rather common. We already have very efficient cooperation in place with the Ministry of Justice to convey our thoughts and ideas to the legislator.”

The primary focus of the Business Law Committee is on analysis and amendment of corporate, competition and insolvency legislation and legal practice. The Fundamental Rights Committee's main focus is on analysis and amendment of legislation and legal practice related to human rights and fundamental rights protection, the right of defence and criminal and misdemeanour proceedings. In addition to the Business Law Committee and the Fundamental Rights Committee, the Bar Association has also created a new Family Law Committee.

Celebrating its 95th anniversary in 2014, the Estonian Bar Association is a self-governing professional association which organises provision of legal services in private and public interests and protects the professional rights of attorneys. The Estonian Bar Association currently has a total of 872 members.