Summary

The Riigikogu adopted the new Apartment Ownership Act on 15 November 2001, which enters into force on 1 July 2001. As the spread of apartment ownership is based on the housing reform, the author first examines the influence of the housing reform on the development of apartment ownership, including the objectives of the reform and the nature of the object of residential privatisation. The author reaches the conclusion that not enough attention has been paid to the legal regulation of the relations between apartment owners. The author also tackles shortcomings in the former Apartment Ownership Act that brought about the passage of the new Act. In this context, the author outlines the shortcomings of apartment associations and contracts for joint activity as the forms of management of residential buildings and points out the need to implement the principles of protecting the minority and majority. The author criticises the former principle of management of residential buildings according to which the rights and duties of apartment owners were exercised via an apartment association. The solutions offered by the new Act for eliminating the deficiencies are introduced. Further, the author briefly examines the theories of German law concerning the relationship between the physical share of an apartment ownership and common ownership. Comparing these theories with the Estonian law in force, the author points out the differences in the solutions regarding apartment ownership in the Estonian and German law. The author’s position is that the conflicts inherent in the Estonian law currently governing apartment ownership are largely caused by the application of different models in shaping the regulation of apartment ownership.