Legislative--Riigikogu (parliament--101 members, 4-year term). Judicial - Supreme Court. Administrative regions (2010): 15 counties, 33 towns, and 193 municipalities. Political parties: Four parties are presently represented in the parliament: the Estonian Center Party; Estonian Reform Party; Pro Patria-Res Publica Union; and Estonian Social Democrat Party." (Republic of Estonia, 2012) The Political conditions in Estonia consist of the most recent parliamentary election took place on March 6, 2011. Prime Minister Andrus Ansip's center-right coalition remained in power after a strong victory in the polls. The Reform Party and the Pro Patria and Res Publica Union form the current majority government with 33 and 23 seats in parliament, respectively. Other parties in the parliament include the Center Party and the Social Democrat Party. .
Toomas Hendrik Ilves is the President of Estonia. He was a member of the Social Democrat Party, a former Ambassador to the United States, two-time Minister of Foreign Affairs, a member of the Estonian parliament, and a former member of the European Parliament. He first took office on October 9, 2006 and was reelected in August 2011. Estonian legal system is currently going through a transition from the Soviet law. Due to the historical background the legal development is mainly influenced by the German legal tradition. Such an influence is particularly clear in relation to the new principles of civil law. In 1992 a decision was made for adoption of a new Civil Code, which would abolish the ESSR Civil Code adopted in 1964. Estonian court system can be divided into three levels:.
1. The first instance - respective town, county and administrative courts. Town courts and county courts examine civil, criminal and administrative cases. Claims are examined by a single judge or by one judge and two assessors.
2. The second instance - three district courts acting as courts of appeal and reviewing the decisions of the first instance.