Businesswoman Karoli Hindriks and Jobbatical went to court to block the airing of the segment on the TV3 show "Laser," on the grounds the topic covered in the interview had not been pre-agreed.

The case raises questions of journalistic ethics. Marii Karell and All Media Eesti are the defendants in the case.

The "Laser" segment cannot be aired, if at all, until at least the fall, and the plaintiffs have obtained a ban on both audio and video recordings of the segment being aired.

A preliminary hearing took place Tuesday; first-tier Harju County Court spokesperson Viivika Siplane told ERR that proceedings are ongoing, though the case is partly closed to the public.

Sworn Advocate Ants Nõmper, acting for Karell, said the court had on Tuesday dealt with motions relating to evidence collection, and scheduled the next hearing for September 22.

"We did not discuss issues related to securing the claim in court. That means the injunction remains in force, and we accept that," Nõmper said – meaning the interview in question cannot be broadcast before autumn.

Karell's lawyer said he hopes that the court will issue a ruling within a month of the September 22 hearing. The court granted the injunction by default and did not ask for the defendant's position, he added. The court acted in error in doing so, Nõmper said. "In our assessment, the court made a mistake in granting our claim security, but we have no choice other than to accept it."

Standard journalistic practice is not to agree on interview questions ahead of the interview itself; even if the topics likely to be covered get discussed beforehand, it cannot be inferred from that that a journalist cannot ask questions on other subjects during the interview.

In any case, according to Nõmper, no agreements whatsoever were made in this case regarding which questions could or could not be asked ahead of the interview with Hindriks.

"The journalist chose the questions independently, and there was no deviation from the topic on the journalist's part; these were questions related to business activities," Nõmper said.

"The dispute will certainly have an impact on journalism in Estonia and on how journalism is practiced," he added.

Siplane said, referring to legal practice, that asking the opposing party for an opinion on a request to secure a claim is not the rule, but instead an exceptional measure.

"This is especially the case when a court's decision is time-sensitive. The court must resolve a request to secure a claim by the next working day after the application is submitted," Siplane went on.

The defendants appealed the Harju County Court's injunction ruling to the second-tier Tallinn Circuit Court, but this left the lower court's ruling unchanged, Siplane added.

Founded by Hindriks in 2014, Jobbatical initially operated as a recruitment company and has since focused on developing migration and relocation services and tech. In 2024, the company posted losses of €3.28 million from €3.14 million in revenue; 2023's losses were reported at €3.76 million from €2.65 million in revenue.

Jobbatical employed 18 people as of the end of 2024, according to data in the commercial register. As of the first quarter of this year, that figure had fallen to six employees.

The company's services include an automated tracking process for visa applications and other processes involved in migration, and are offered to companies looking to relocate employees internationally, Jobbatical says on its website.

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