President and Riigikogu to meet in court over intelligence law in October
The President's office and the Riigikogu will meet in court in October to determine if a bill which would give greater power to the Estonian Defense Forces is constitutional.
The court hearing has been set for Oct. 8.
President Kersti Kaljulaid's office and the Riigikogu will dispute in the Supreme Court whether the Estonian Defence Forces Organisation Act 2008, which will expand the surveillance capabilities of the Estonian Defence Forces (EDF), is unconstitutional.
The previous Riigikogu passed the amended legislation on Feb. 20. President Kaljulaid, however, rejected the legislation, sending it back to the Riigikogu. The new Riigikogu to be elected in March passed the legislation unchanged on May 29, after which the president announced on June 14 that she would take the law to the Supreme Court.
Proclaiming or rejecting legislation passed by the Riigikogu is under the exclusive jurisdiction of the president and involves no other Constitutional institution. The president also has the right to veto legislation by not proclaiming it and instead sending it back to the Riigikogu.
The Office of the President commissioned a legal analysis of the Estonian Defence Forces Organisation Act, amendments to which President Kersti Kaljulaid rejected earlier this year, from the law firm Sorainen, in order to take the legislation to the Supreme Court.
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Editor: Helen Wright
