District heating firm AS Giga had filed a complaint with the Supreme Court over a decision made by the first-tier Tartu Administrative Court.

The Supreme Court found however that the details of a case can only be withheld from the public if the court has declared the proceedings closed

The Supreme Court's Administrative Chamber announced Friday that it concurred with a second-tier circuit court decision which stated that AS Giga had not had the right to file an appeal against the administrative court's letter in any case.

The chamber stated: "Public court proceedings in principle serve the interests of justice and transparency goals, helping to ensure a fair trial."

As a general norm, administrative courts proceedings are public, and cases must be heard via public rather than closed-door hearings, the Supreme Court added.

"Anyone can attend a public court hearing, follow the proceedings, and report on them," the chamber noted.

Exceptions could only occur in a fairly narrow range of cases specifically referred to in the law, while it is up to a court to ensure the transparency of the justice process, regardless of whether the proceedings are written or oral, the Supreme Court added.

AS Giga challenged the initial administrative court ruling by submitting a complaint, categorized as an appeal, to the Tartu Circuit Court.

The circuit court sent back the complaint unsatisfied, in February this year.

In December 2022, multiple media outlets in Estonia reported that AS Giga had lost a tax dispute with the Tax and Customs Board (MTA) which had been heard at the Tartu Administrative Court.

In January 2023, a representative of AS Giga filed an inquiry with the same court, stating that the company had not consented to the disclosure of the non-final ruling to third parties, and that the court had not sought the company's position on the matter.

Furthermore, AS Giga said it was unaware of any court order made under the Code of Administrative Court Procedure which would permit the release of the non-final ruling to third parties such as the media.

The Tartu Administrative Court responded that it had not disclosed the full text of the ruling to non-parties and had only via its press officer provided a brief summary of the decision to journalists as a press release, in response to media inquiries.

Since AS Giga is a high-profile company, this meant there was a "significant public interest in the case," the court added.

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