The Supreme Court's Criminal Chamber explained in a decision published on Friday that although Eamets did not realize the illegality of his actions at the time, this does not absolve him of responsibility.

In June 2023, Raul Eamets, then dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Tartu, signed a "cooperation agreement for conducting research" with the Pere Sihtkapital Foundation while serving as a member of the foundation's council. This violated procedural restrictions, which prohibit officials from making decisions or taking actions related to themselves or related persons.

The Police and Border Guard Board fined the former dean. Eamets appealed the decision in court, claiming he was unaware of the illegality of his actions. He mistakenly believed that the procedural restriction only applied to transactions involving financial obligations for the university. The Supreme Court's Criminal Chamber, however, determined that this mistake was not unavoidable and thus did not exempt him from responsibility.

The Supreme Court clarified that as a dean fulfilling public duties, Eamets should have familiarized himself with the relevant laws. The Chamber emphasized that understanding the pertinent sections of the Anti-Corruption Act does not require advanced legal knowledge. Although Eamets sought advice from both the university and the foundation's lawyers, he did not explicitly ask either for a clear stance on the procedural restriction.

In its Friday decision, the Supreme Court upheld the Police and Border Guard Board's original penalty, which imposed a fine of 100 penalty units, equivalent to €400, on Raul Eamets.

Additionally, the Supreme Court decided that Raul Eamets must bear the legal costs incurred in the extrajudicial proceedings and at the county court level. However, it ordered the Republic of Estonia to reimburse Raul Eamets €600 to cover the fees paid to his chosen legal counsel for the cassation proceedings.

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