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Keidi Kõiv and Villy Lopman write about ARIB’s controversial interpretation of area-related aid

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Keidi Kõiv and Villy Lopman write about ARIB’s controversial interpretation of area-related aid

In the April issue of the agricultural magazine Põllumehe Teataja, RASK attorney-at-law Villy Lopman and support measures specialist Keidi Kõiv published a reply to the Estonian Agricultural Registers and Information Board’s (ARIB) position regarding the formal right of use of land leased by farmers and the requirements for area-related aid.

According to ARIB, establishing the right of use of land is problematic when verifying area-related aid and payment applications. All area-related aid is subject to the requirement that land use must have a legal basis in order for the applicant to be eligible. ARIB has also explained that if the applicant has no lawful basis to use state land, such land is not eligible. According to RASK attorneys, however, this position cannot be accepted, as it relies on an oversimplified legal understanding of the issue.

The legal order is designed to ensure legal peace. Not every error voids a legal relationship. This only happens in exceptional cases.