Former Pirita district elder released from custody news.err.ee - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from news.err.ee Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
0 >Paul Keres, one of the two lawyers seeking the removal of a judge from the Port of Tallinn trial. Source: ERR
Two lawyers representing a defendant in a corruption trial are seeking the removal of the judge in the long-running case.
The lawyers, Paul Keres and Andri Rohtla, had already recently been fined by Harju County Court for non-attendance of a hearing on April 27. The pair say that coronavirus risks were their main concern and motivation in the incident.
Paul Keres said Tuesday that the court is biased, a situation unlikely to change as long as Kristina Valiste and two assistant judges, Vladimir Simagin and Peeter Kaasik, whose removal the lawyers are also seeking, are sitting.
0 >Paul Keres, one of the two lawyers who Harju County Court fined, after they expressed concerns over COVID-19 practices at the courthouse. Source: Siim Lõvi /ERR
Two lawyers have been fined €1,600 for failing to attend a court hearing last month.
The lawyers, Paul Keres and Andri Rohtla, said they had not attended on the day in question, April 27, due to fears over the coronavirus and precautions in place in court, set against what they called muddled information on best practices, and inconsistent activity on the part of the courthouse.
The lawyers were representing defendants in the Port of Tallinn (Tallinna Sadam) corruption case, and their client, Ain Kaljurand, also failed to attend the hearing, at Harju County Court, in Tallinn, on April 27.