LegalWise

Estonian law in numbers

Numbers from the LegalWise database: changes in the law, court decisions and the provisions cited most. The data comes from Riigi Teataja and is updated every night. As of 23 October 2026.

Big changes ahead

Changes in the law in 2026

196
laws changed in substance
3,039
provisions changed in substance
6
new laws

Counts the changes that entered into force from 1 January 2026 to 23 October 2026. Purely technical changes (an agency's new name, for example) are not counted.

The most changed laws

  1. 1.Krediidiasutuste seadusKAS127 provisions · 6 dates of entry into force
  2. 2.EhitusseadustikEhS108 provisions · 7 dates of entry into force
  3. 3.Väärtpaberituru seadusVPTS104 provisions · 4 dates of entry into force
  4. 4.Kohaliku omavalitsuse korralduse seadusKOKS96 provisions · 4 dates of entry into force
  5. 5.Kaitseväeteenistuse seadusKVTS64 provisions · 2 dates of entry into force
  6. 6.Atmosfääriõhu kaitse seadusAÕKS57 provisions · 6 dates of entry into force
  7. 7.Väljasõidukohustuse ja sissesõidukeelu seadusVSS56 provisions · 2 dates of entry into force
  8. 8.Hoiu-laenuühistu seadusHLÜS52 provisions · 1 date of entry into force
  9. 9.Välismaalaste seadusVMS52 provisions · 5 dates of entry into force
  10. 10.Kriminaalmenetluse seadustikKrMS48 provisions · 5 dates of entry into force

New laws

Court decisions 1 October 2025–30 September 2026

290
Supreme Court
3,249
Circuit courts
2,514
Administrative courts
16,132
County courts

The provisions court decisions cite most often

  1. VÕS § 113 – Penalty for late payment5,682 decisions
  2. TsMS § 444 – Simplification – and omission from the judgment – of the descriptive part and of the statement of reasons4,004 decisions
  3. TsMS § 173 – Determining the allocation of case costs in the judicial disposition3,756 decisions
  4. TsMS § 168 – Allocation of case costs where the case is rejected, proceedings are terminated or the court claim is dismissed or admitted3,440 decisions
  5. TsMS § 178 – Contesting the assessment of case costs3,413 decisions
  6. TsMS § 162 – Allocation of case costs in action-by-claim proceedings3,407 decisions
  7. TsMS § 174 – Court’s authority to assess case costs3,362 decisions
  8. TsMS § 177 – Judicial disposition that assesses case costs3,360 decisions
  9. TsMS § 407 – Default judgment on failure to respond to the court claim2,967 decisions
  10. KrMS § 180 – Compensation for costs of the case when a judgment of conviction is rendered2,683 decisions

Number of decisions naming the provision (in the decision's text or in Riigi Teataja's links); each decision counts once.

Without the procedure codes (TsMS, HKMS, KrMS, VTMS)

  1. VÕS § 113 – Penalty for late payment5,682 decisions
  2. KarS § 68 – Consideration of provisional custody and detention1,791 decisions
  3. VÕS § 403⁴ – Implementation of principle of responsible lending1,545 decisions
  4. RLS § 59 – Procedural operations in civil proceedings1,367 decisions
  5. VÕS § 94 – Interest on obligations1,277 decisions
  6. KarS § 75 – Supervision of conduct1,273 decisions
  7. KarS § 78 – Calculation of period of probation1,199 decisions
  8. KarS § 73 – Probation1,138 decisions
  9. VÕS § 402 – Definition of consumer credit contract and consumer credit contract relating to residential immovable property1,108 decisions
  10. KarS § 424 – Driving of power-driven vehicle, off-road vehicle or tram in state of intoxication1,077 decisions

Supreme Court

  1. TsMS § 692 – Grounds for setting aside a judgment under the rules for appeal to the Supreme Court49 decisions
  2. TsMS § 691 – Powers of the Supreme Court when dealing with the appeal48 decisions
  3. HKMS § 230 – Powers of the Supreme Court in proceedings on the appeal44 decisions
  4. PSJKS § 46 – Powers of the Supreme Court42 decisions
  5. TsMS § 173 – Determining the allocation of case costs in the judicial disposition37 decisions
  6. HKMS § 108 – Division of case costs32 decisions
  7. VÕS § 113 – Penalty for late payment32 decisions
  8. KrMS § 186 – Compensation for costs of the case in proceedings on an appeal to the Supreme Court and in proceedings for extraordinary review of a judicial disposition that has entered into effect30 decisions
  9. HKMS § 109 – Awarding compensation for case costs27 decisions
  10. HKMS § 175 – Publishing the judgment25 decisions

Committees and the Chancellor of Justice

253
Public procurement review committee decisions
63
Industrial property board of appeal decisions
196
Opinions of the Chancellor of Justice

The LegalWise database today

4,104
laws and regulations in force
10,622
local government regulations
47
EU acts
51,014
court decisions
4,496
summaries of Supreme Court and EU Court decisions
8,179
committee decisions and Chancellor opinions
21,777
explanatory memorandum passages
1,028
official English translations

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How the numbers are counted

Laws and their versions come from Riigi Teataja (texts in force and versions since 2010). A change is a provision's new wording, a new provision or a repealed one.

A technical change is the same short replacement repeated across a law (an agency's name, for example); a law in which only that changes is not counted as changed in substance.

Court decisions come from Riigi Teataja's decision search. The period is the last 12 complete months, as decisions are often published days or weeks late.

Using the data

The numbers may be used freely; please cite: LegalWise, legalwise.ee/statistika. Press enquiries: info@legalwise.ee.