President and Members of the Court
The President of the Supreme Administrative Court leads the work of the Court and is responsible for its performance. The President also participates in the adjudication of individual legal cases by acting as chair of the composition. Members are called Justices of the Supreme Administrative Court. The President of the Republic of Finland appoints the President and the members of the Supreme Administrative Court.
President
Kari Kuusiniemi
President of the Supreme Administrative Court 1.9.2018–
b. 1960
Master of Laws 1982
Licentiate of Laws 1985
Doctor of Laws 1992
Assistant and Assistant Researcher, Research Council of Finland, 1983–1984
Assistant, Helsinki University of Technology, 1984
Junior Research Fellow, Research Council of Finland, 1985–1991
Assistant in Economic Law, Helsinki University of Technology, 1985–1988
Professor of Economic Law, Helsinki University of Technology, 1988
Lecturer in Environmental Law, Helsinki University of Technology, 1991–1995
Acting Professor of Law, Helsinki University of Technology, 1993–1995
Professor of Environmental Law, University of Turku, 1996–2002
Justice (fixed term), the Supreme Administrative Court, 1999–2000
Justice (fixed term), the Supreme Administrative Court, 2002
Justice, the Supreme Administrative Court, 2003–2018
President of the Supreme Administrative Court 1.9.2018–
Other activities:
- Docent of four Finnish Universities
- Visiting professor at the University of Louisville, Kentucky (September-October, 1997)
- Expert in the South-African Water Law review (1995–1996)
- Chairman, member and secretary in several law drafting commissions since 1985
- Member of ERA Board of Trustees 2010–2020
- Member of the Board of the National Defence Course Association 2011–, Chairman 2020–
- Member of the Academy of Science and Letters 2014–
- Member of the Board of the Finnish Association of European Law 2014–2022
Publications
Some 20 books (partly joint publications) and more than 100 articles, several reports, case comments, etc. in the field of Environmental and Administrative Law, mainly in Finnish
Members
Born 1961
Master of Laws 1987
Licentiate of Laws 1991
Doctor of Laws 2000
Trained on the Bench in 1994
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2013-2015, permanent 2015-
- Assistant at the University of Turku 1987-1990
- Court Secretary at the County Administrative Court of Central Finland 1991-1994
- Court Secretary at the County Administrative Court of Uusimaa 1994-2000
- Judicial Secretary and Judge at the Administrative Court of Helsinki 2000-2012
- Special Advisor at the Ministry of Justice 2004
Born 1966
Master of Agriculture and Forestry Science / Environmental Protection and Fishing Industry Science 1991
Master of Laws 1995
Licentiate of Laws 2003
Special Profession Degree of Management 2007
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2017-2019, permanent 2020-)
- Lawyer at the Fishing Industry Central Association 1995
- Teacher at the University of Helsinki, Faculty of Science for Agriculture, Forestry and Bioscience 1995-2009
- Senior Inspector and Special Planner at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry 1996-2000
- Referendary at the Environmental Permission Authority of Western Finland 2000-2004
- Office Manager at the Environmental Center of the City of Helsinki 2004-2006 and 2007
- Counsellor of Committee (Agriculture, Forestry and Environment) at the Parliament 2006, 2007-2017
Born 1976
Master of Laws, University of Helsinki 2004
Licentiate of Laws, University of Helsinki 2006
Doctor of Laws, University of Helsinki 2011
Researcher at the University of Helsinki 2004–2009
Lawyer at the LE-Consulting Ltd (part-time) 2004–2010
Lawyer at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (fixed-term) 2004–2005, 2008–2010
Senior Legal Adviser at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Natural Resources
Department 2010–2016
Senior Researcher at the University of Eastern Finland, Law School 2014–2017
Professor at the University of Eastern Finland (50% leave of absence), Law School 2017–2025
Research Professor at the Finnish Environment Institute Syke (50%, part-time) 2017–2025
Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (fixed-term) 2025–
Born 1971
Master of Laws 1996
Trained on the Bench in 1997
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2019, permanent 2020-)
- Notary at the District Court of Mustasaari 1996-1997
- Judicial Secretary at the Court of Appeal of Vaasa 1998-2003
- Judge at the District Court of Mustasaari 2002-2003
- Lawyer at the Sercetariat of the European Court of Human Rights 2003-2009
- Judicial Secretary at the Supreme Administrative Court 2009-2012
- Judge at the Administrative Court of Helsinki 2012-2018
Born 1966
Master of Laws, University of Turku, 1994
Career:
- Member, Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, acting member April 2016 – May 2017, appointed for life tenure in May 2017
- Various research and teaching posts at the University of Turku 1994 – 2002
- Secretary of legislation at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Legal Department 1998 – 2000
- Legal Adviser, Prime Minister’s Office, EU Secretariat 2002 – 2005
- Counsellor of the Constitutional Law Committee of the Finnish Parliament, acting as the clerk of the Committee 2005 – 2016
- Counsellor of the Grand Committee of the Finnish Parliament, acting as the clerk of the Committee in the field of EU affairs 2006 – 2007
Born 1972
Master of Laws, University of Helsinki, 1996
Doctor of Philosophy (law), University of Cambridge, England, 2000
Trained on the bench, District Court of Helsinki, 2002
Career:
- Secretary of Legislation at the Ministry of Justice (2000-2001, temporary)
- Notary at the District Court of Helsinki (2001-2002)
- Counsellor of Legislation at the Ministry of Justice (2002-2003, temporary, 2003-2007, permanent, partially on a leave of absence)
- Ministerial Adviser at the Prime Minister’s Office (2003, temporary)
- Senior Specialist at the Permanent Representation of Finland to the European Union (2006-2007)Director of EU Litigation and Agent of the Government of Finland before the Court of Justice of the European Union (2007-2008, temporary)
- Deputy Director of EU Litigation and Deputy Agent of the Government of Finland before the Court of Justice of the European Union (2008-2010)
- Director of EU Litigation and Agent of the Government of Finland before the Court of Justice of the European Union (2011-2019)
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member January-July 2020, permanent August 2020-)
Other activities:
- Adjunct Professor of International Law at the University of Helsinki (2002-)
- Chairman of the ad hoc working party of the Council of the European Union on fundamental rights and citizenship (2006)
- Chairman of the working party of the Council of the European Union on the Court of Justice (2019)
- Visiting Professor of the College of Europe (Bruges) (2025-)
Writings in the field of EU law
Born 1979
Master of Laws 2004
Licentiate of Laws 2008
Trained at the bench 2007
Career:
- Member at the Supreme Administrative Court, acting member 2021 and permanent 2022–
- Associate Lawyer at Roschier Attorneys Ltd., 2004–2006
- Judge (notary) at Imatra District Court, 2006–2007
- Senior City Counsel at the City of Helsinki, 2007–2010
- Referendary at the Supreme Administrative Court, 2010–2014
- Senior Referendary Counsellor at the Supreme Administrative Court, 2014–2016
- Leading Referendary Counsellor at the Supreme Administrative Court, 2016–2017
- Secretary General of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2017–2019
- Judge at the Administrative Court of Helsinki, 2019–2021
Born 1960
Degree in Law (LL.M) 1987 (University of Helsinki)
Postgraduate degree in Law in 1990
Doctor of Laws in 2000
Career:
- Clerical Officer, Secretariat of the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, Helsinki Commission, 1982-1986
- Assistant in International Law at the University of Helsinki, 1987-1989
- Notary, Hyvinkää local court, 1989-1990
- Legal Assistant, Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, The Hague, the Netherlands, 1990-1993
- Legal Officer, Ministry of the Environment, 1993-2000
- Ministerial Adviser, Ministry of the Environment, 2000-2016
- Acting Professor of International Law at the University of Helsinki, 2003 and 2004
- Part-time Professor of International Environmental Law at the University of Eastern Finland, 2004-2016
- Member (acting) of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2016-2017
- Member of the Compliance Committee of the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 2016-
Mr. Kuokkanen has participated as a member of the Finnish delegation in the negotiations of several multilateral environmental agreements. He has published a number of articles on international environmental law and international law.
Born 1968
Career:
- Tasks as Research Assistant, Assistant and Doctoral Trainee at Turku University 1995-2001
- Acting Professor of Public Law (International Law) at Turku University 2001
- Assistant of Administrative Law- and Fiscal Law at Turku University 2002-2008
- Researcher at Turku University 2009
- Senior Researcher at Turku University 2010
- Post-Doctoral Researcher at Turku University 2011
- Senior Researcher (Academy of Finland Post-Doctoral Researcher Project) at Turku University 2012-2013
- Associate Professor of Public Law (tenure track) at Tampere University 2014-2015
- Professor of Laws at Turku University 2016-2017
- Professor of Public Law at Turku University 2018-
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2020, permanent 2021-)
- Judge of the European Court of Human Rights 2025-
Other activities:
- Member of Non-Discrimination and Equality Tribunal 2015-
- Expert Legal Opinions to the Constitutional Law Committee of Parliament and other Committees of Parliament and Ministries
- Scientific Expert and Position of Trust in Finland and abroad
- Editor of peer-reviewed law journal Oikeus “Justice” 2011-2012.
Publications in Finnish and English particularly about Fundamental Rights and Human Rights and constitutional review.
Born 1971
Master of Laws, 1995
Trained on the Bench, 1997
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 1.9.2019-2020, permanent 2021-).
- Notary at the District Court of Alavus 1996-1997
- Court Secretary at the County Administrative Court of Uusimaa 1997-1999
- Advisor at Pricewaterhouse Coopers Ltd 1999-2010
- Judge at the Administrative Court of Helsinki 2010-
Born 1958
Master of Laws, 1982
Trained on the Bench, 1984
Career:
- Associate Lawyer at a law firm 1982–1983
- Notary and Judge at the District Court of Heinola 1983–1984
- Legal Secretary at the County Administrative Court of Häme 1984–1998
- Referendary at the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland 1999–2006
- Secretary General of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland 2007–2008
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland 2009–
Justice Mutikainen is also the Vice-Chairman of the Judicial Appointments Board (2015–) and the Chairman of the Bar Examining Board (2019–).
Born 1963
Degree in Law, University of Helsinki, 1987
Licentiate of Laws, 2006
Doctor of Laws, 2014
Career:
- Member, Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, acting member May 2016 – 2018, permanent September 2018 –
- Lawyer, Pension Insurance Company Eläke-Varma, 1987 – 1988
- Court training, the District Court of Lapua, 1988 – 1989
- Referendary, Pension Appeal Board, 1989
- Attorney-at-Law, Attorney´s House ANPR Ltd, 1990 – 2003
- Judicial Secretary, Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2003 – 2005
- Senior Judicial Secretary, Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2005 – 2007
- Referendary Counsellor, Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2008 – 2018 (on leave)
Born 1965
Master of Laws, University of Helsinki, 1989
Trained on the Bench, 1990
Doctor of Laws, University of Helsinki, 2012
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2014, permanent 2015-)
- Customs Taxation Inspector at the Customs Office of Helsinki District 1992
- Court Secretary at the County Administrative Court of Uusimaa 1992-1996
- Various posts as Corporate Tax Expert at PricewaterhouseCoopers Ltd in 1996-2000 and 2003-2007
- Corporate Tax Expert at Ernst & Young Ltd 2001-2003
- Judicial Secretary at the Supreme Administrative Court 2007-2008
- Corporate Tax Expert at KPMG Ltd 2008-2014;
- Referendary Counsellor at the Supreme Administrative Court 2011
Born 1970
Master of Political Sciences, University of Turku 1994
Master of Laws, University of Turku 1995
Specialist Vocational Qualification in Leadership, Management Institute of Finland JTO 2011
Doctor of Laws, University of Turku 2025
Trainee, Ministry for Foreign Affairs 1994
Senior Official, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health 1995–1996
Legal Officer, Ministry for Foreign Affairs 1996–2001
Judicial Secretary, Referendary and Head of Research at the Supreme Administrative Court 1998–2008
Lawyer, Secretariat of the European Court of Human Rights 2005–2007
Counsellor of Legislation, Ministry of Justice 2008
Secretary General of the Supreme Administrative Court 2009–2024
Senior Specialist, Ministry of Finance 2014–2015
Judge, Administrative Court of Helsinki 2017–2018
Director of Legal Affairs and Member of the Cabinet of the President of the Republic of Finland 2018–2024
Member, Supreme Administrative Court 2025-
Born 1967
Master of Laws, 1992
Licentiate of Laws, 1996
Doctor of Laws, 2001
Career:
- Chief justice of the Administrative Court of Northern Finland 2020–2023
- Lawyer at Pikkujämsä Attorneys Ltd 1992-, Attorney 1997-2001
- Tax Law Assistant at the University of Lapland 1999-2001
- Law and Tax Advisor at KLegal Ltd / KPMG 2001-2003
- Partner and Attorney at PPV Lex Attorneys Ltd 2004-2015
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2013, permanent 1.8.2015-)
Born 1960
Master of Laws, 1984
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court 2017–
- Various posts at the County Administrative Board of Kyme 1984-1995
- Lawyer at the Environment Center of South-Eastern Finland 1995-2002
- Various posts at the Administrative Court of Kouvola 2002-2011
- Judge at the Administrative Court of Helsinki 2011-2016
Born 1959
Master of Laws, 1983
Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration, 1985
Doctor of Laws, 2002
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2008, permanent 2009-)
- Deputy Head of Department at Suomen Yritysrahoitus Ltd 1984-1985
- Consultant at Kesko 1985-1987; Lawyer at Mancon Juridia Ltd 1988
- Various posts at the Chamber of Commerce 1988-2008
- Counsellor at the Ministry of Finance 1998
- Various posts at the Universities of Helsinki and Turku 2001, 2003-
Born 1963
Master of Laws, 1988
Trained on the Bench, 1992
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2011, permanent 2012-)
- Trainee and Research Assistant at the Ministry of Environment 1988-1988
- Research Assistant at the Academy of Finland 1988-1989
- Assistant at the University of Helsinki 1989
- Amanuensis at the University of Helsinki 1989
- Lawyer at the Environment Center of the City of Helsinki 1989-1991, Administrative Manager 1991, Environmental Inspector 1992-1993
- Various posts at the District Court of Tammela 1991-1992
- Teacher at the University of Technology 1994
- Referendary at the Museum Authority 1994-1996
- Senior Inspector 1995-1998, Legal Advisor 1998-2004 at the Ministry of Environment
- Legislative Counsellor at the Ministry of Justice 2003-2004
- Referendary 2003 and Environmental Councellor / Chair 2004-2009 at the Environment Permission Authority of Western Finland
- Director at the Regional State Administrative Agency 2010
- Various posts at the Regional State Administrative Agency of Southern Finland 2010-2012
Born 1959
Degree in Law, University of Helsinki, 1984
Doctor of Laws, 2010
Career:
- Referendary (various positions) at the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 1986–1995
- Various positions at the Ministry of Justice, Law Drafting Department (legal expert, Counsellor of Legislation), 1995–2008
- Acting Judge at the Market Court, 2008–2009
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2010 – (acting member 1.1.–31.8.2010.)
Member Siitari has participated in many law drafting projects at various times. Titles in legal writing concerning public procurement, environmental laws and procedure at administrative courts.
Born 1960
Master of Laws 1984, University of Helsinki
Licentiate of Laws, 1989, University of Helsinki
Doctor of Laws, 1996, University of Helsinki
Doctor of Laws, h.c. 2013, University of Uppsala, Sweden
Post-graduate studies in Germany, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, 1989-1990
Career:
- Supreme Administrative Court, Member, (acting member 2011, permanent 2012-)
- District of Loviisa, court practicing,1985-1986
- Ministry of Education, Committee secretary, 1987-1988
- University of Helsinki, legal secretary at the Chancellor’s Office, assistant in administrative law, research fellow, 1990-1992
- Academy of Finland, junior research fellow, 1992-1995
- Research work at Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg, Germany, 1996-1997
- University of Helsinki, acting associate professor in administrative law, 1996, 1997
- Ministry of Justice, counsellor of legislation, legal adviser, 1997-2003
- Academy of Finland, academy research fellow, 2003-2008
- University of Helsinki, professor in administrative law, 2008-2012
Born 1961
Master of Laws, 1987
Trained on the Bench, 1989
Career:
- Member of the Supreme Administrative Court (acting member 2016, permanent 2017-)
- Secretary at the Special Court (Water) of Western Finland 1987-1993
- Referendary at the Supreme Administrative Court 1994-2001
- Judge at the Administrative Court of Hämeenlinna 2001-2016
Born in 1978
Master of Laws, 2002
Licentiate of Laws, 2005
Doctor of Laws, 2007
Trained on the bench, 2021
Career:
- Member, Supreme Administrative Court, (acting member 2021, permanent 2022)
- Research assistant, University of Helsinki, 2002
- Researcher, University of Helsinki, 2003
- Assistant of Land, Water and Environmental Law, University of Helsinki, 2004-2007
- Administrative Trainee, European Commission, 2005Referendary (part-time), Rural Businesses Appeals Board, 2006-2008
- Legal Expert, Finnish Environment Institute, 2007-2009
- Assistant of Land, Water and Environmental Law, University of Helsinki, 2010
- Lawyer, Roschier Attorneys Ltd, 2010-2019 (attorney-at-law 2012-2019)
- Trainee District Judge, District Court of Itä-Uusimaa, 2020
Born in 1982
Master of Laws, 2008
Career:
- Member of Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2024–
- Assistant Judge of the Administrative Court of Turku, 2008–2012
- Administrative Judge of the Administrative Court of Åland, 2012–2018
- Referendary Counsellor of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2018–2019
- Secretary General of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, 2019–2024