Summary

The Code of Criminal Procedure, which entered into force in July 2004, has been in effect for a little over half a year. In this period, approximately 40 criminal cases have been examined under the general procedure in Estonian courts according to the new code. The implementation of the code, however, is not progressing particularly smoothly. The problem here is apparently both the changed logic in the criminal proceedings, which is often not fully grasped by the participants in the proceedings, as well as the text of the code, which on occasion offers up illogical solutions or provides no assistance at all in resolving procedural situations. There has also been little attention shown towards adversarial procedure by the Estonian-language legal journals, which means that it is difficult for participants in the proceedings to find solutions in the interpretation and implementation of the new code, which would match the general logic of the proceedings.

Proceeding from the implementation act, a noteworthy part of court proceedings still takes place according to the provisions of the Codex of Criminal Procedure. The use of simplified proceedings is now even more extensive. The basis of the article, therefore, is only some of the very few court sessions that have been held under the general procedure according to the new code – those that the author has had the opportunity himself to observe. The article offers some directions regarding the implementation of the part of the Code of Criminal Procedure that regulates court proceedings – proceeding from the experience of other countries with adversarial procedure and the general logic of criminal proceedings.