Sorainen receives “Supporter of national defence” recognition for the fourth consecutive year

For the fourth year in a row, the Estonian Ministry of Defence has recognised Sorainen as a supporter of national defence, awarding us the silver-level recognition for our contribution to Estonia’s defence efforts.

“Your example inspires other employers as well and makes supporting national defenders seem increasingly natural and self-evident choice,” said President Alar Karis at the “Supporter of national defence” recognition event for entrepreneurs. According to the president, national defence can only function when it is backed by society as a whole, and entrepreneurs and employers play a central role in this.

“National defence is not somebody else’s concern. For us, it is not merely an obligation – it is part of who we are and what we stand for,” said Kaupo Lepasepp, country managing partner at Sorainen Estonia.

We support employees who contribute to national defence

• We continue paying the full salary and provide two weeks of additional leave per year for employees participating in refresher training exercises, including reservists and members of the Estonian Defence League and the Women’s Voluntary Defence Organisation.
• We provide additional days off for participants in the Estonian Defence League’s basic training.
• In the first year of joining the Estonian Defence League or another national defence organisation, we grant five additional paid leave days for participation in exercises.
• For all active members of national defence organisations, we grant two additional paid leave days each year from the second year onwards.

With a strong commitment to national defence and the firm’s support, our employees actively take part in refresher training exercises and Estonian Defence League drills. Between January and the end of April 2026, four of our employees spent a total of 20 additional leave days participating in Estonian Defence League activities or refresher training exercises. Participants share their experiences with colleagues, helping embed the value of taking part in exercises into our organisational culture.

We contribute to the development of national defence and the defence industry

• In the summer of 2025, we submitted proposals to the Ministry of the Interior for amendments to the Weapons Act. Many of the proposals were supported by the ministry, and the draft bill is now before the Estonian Parliament. Some proposals remain under consideration as part of the intent to develop a new consolidated text of the Act.
• We have taken part, and continue to take part, in numerous projects and initiatives that are important for Estonia’s defence capability. For example, dozens of defence technology companies founded in Ukraine have come to Estonia with our support, and their products are used by several NATO member states and Ukraine.
• We are one of the three lead organisations behind the Business Defence League (Ettevõtete Kaitseliit) initiative. The idea originated from Äripäev’s “Successful Estonia” (Edukas Eesti) competition, where the winning opinion piece was titled “Successful Estonia winner: a high-impact business defence league would be easy to launch”. As well as us, the initiative group includes Helmes and Äripäev. Sorainen is represented in the initiative by Kaupo Lepasepp. The author of the idea was Lieutenant Colonel Tambet Mäe. We have made it our goal to bring the idea to life through joint effort.

We support national defence initiatives and cooperation networks

We are also among the founders and lead organisers of several initiatives supporting the development of the sector.

• Through our pro bono programme Shared Mission, we provide EUR 100,000 worth of free legal advice in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania every year. In 2026, Shared Mission is supporting organisations with the ambition to scale their impact across borders, including national defence organisations. In 2025, the focus was on projects strengthening the defence sector and national security, as well as others enhancing crisis preparedness and societal resilience. We received close to 40 applications from startups, research institutions, and technology solution developers. Following a thorough evaluation, we are continuing our cooperation with 15 projects, providing them with free legal and tax advice to help them grow and address legal and business challenges.
  • The seven projects selected from Estonia relate to autonomous systems, cybersecurity, tactical robotics, AI-powered analytics, and drone technologies. This reflects Estonia’s strength in cyber defence and innovation.
  • The four projects selected from Latvia are developing secure, high-tech optical systems and electric mobility solutions for defence purposes, as well as conducting research in defence technology. Latvia serves as a strong example of close cooperation between science and business.
  • The three projects selected from Lithuania focus on satellite intelligence, autonomous navigation and communication technologies for defence purposes. One of the Lithuanian candidates recently won a defence hackathon with its visual-recognition-based targeting system. The Lithuanian projects highlight the country’s emergence in the field of space-based and AI-powered defence solutions.
• In February 2026, we signed a cooperation memorandum to launch the National Defence Year programme for basic schools, led by the Defence Resources Agency. The initiative establishes a cooperation framework aimed at basic schools (which in Estonia provide education for students aged between 7 and 16), to promote an informed citizenry and strengthen national resilience. The programme also serves a broader societal purpose by helping young people develop a sense of responsibility and belonging, as well as being prepared to protect their home and community. The memorandum was signed on behalf of the firm by our counsel, and head of the Defence sector group in Estonia, Robin Teever.
• Our firm is a founding member of the Defence, Security and Resilience Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Estonia (AmCham Estonia), established in February 2026. Sorainen is represented on the committee by Robin Teever. The committee brings together AmCham Estonia members active in – or interested in – defence, cybersecurity, critical infrastructure, transport, energy, dual-use technologies or other fields relating to security and resilience. It creates a lasting framework for cooperation and dialogue with Estonian and US partners on issues of rapidly growing strategic importance. At a time when Estonia and its allies face an increasingly complex security environment, the Committee has set the following objectives:
  • to strengthen transatlantic cooperation between Estonian and US businesses and institutions
  • to support members in navigating the defence and security markets and understanding policymaking
  • to promote good practices, innovative solutions and resilience, including in cybersecurity and the protection of critical infrastructure
  • to foster meaningful dialogue between public authorities, experts and industry
• We have partnered with the Founders’ Society (Asutajate Selts) for several years in jointly organising the Estonian DefenceTech Meetup. Launched in February 2024, the event series has become a key gathering for entrepreneurs and investors in the defence technology sector. It has helped build a better understanding of developments in the defence sector, supported companies in finding investors, and encouraged cross-sector networking and new connections. Indirectly, the events have led to dozens of investments, agreements and new hires.

We contribute to the development of national defence law and support Ukraine

• Our employees support Ukraine in its war against Russian aggression, both individually and through joint effort and donation drives organised by the firm.
• Kaupo Lepasepp is a member of the Estonian Bar Association’s National Defence Law Committee, whose aim is to encourage advocates to take part in national defence, enable them to contribute through their professional skills, develop rules-based national defence law suited to a democratic state governed by the rule of law, and resolve or mitigate potential conflicts between advocates’ professional guarantees and their participation in national defence.
• Since 2022, we have had a Defence sector group – a team of lawyers specialised in advising defence sector businesses and public institutions. Among other things, our advisory team is part of the CR14 consortium, which is developing a data- and AI-based cyber-risk detection system supported by the Ministry of Defence.

“Supporter of national defence” recognition event, 15 June 2026. The photo features Kaimo Kuusk, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence of Republic of Estonia; Lieutenant General Andrus Merilo, Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces; President of the Republic of Estonia Alar Karis; and Kaupo Lepasepp, country managing partner at Sorainen Estonia. Photo: Arno Mikkor.

We keep national defence topics on the public agenda

Our people speak up in support of national defence at conferences and other events on an almost monthly basis. Below are a few examples between May 2025 and May 2026.

• On 28 April 2026, we hosted a defence-themed business breakfast focusing on the investment fast track, defence industry parks, insurance and export control. Alongside our own experts, speakers included Indrek Kangur, head of legal at Milrem Robotics; Siim Kangur, development adviser at the Estonian Defence and Aerospace Industry Association; and Indrek Sirp, special adviser on the defence industry at the Ministry of Defence.
• We added a defence-focused panel discussion, “Should we be defensive about defence M&A in the Baltics? Sell now or wait?”, to the programme of the Baltic M&A and Private Equity Forum held in Riga on 23 April 2026.
• In March 2026, together with the international law firm Freshfields, we jointly organised defence-themed seminars titled “Supporting your growth in export defence markets” in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
• In February 2026, our founder – and Finnish reserve officer – Aku Sorainen spoke at Estonian DefenceTech Meetup #12, on the topic “The Rifle and the Republic: Why Civilian Defence Still Matters”.
• In December 2025, our former partner Karin Madisson took part in a discussion organised by the Sustainable Entrepreneurship Association: “Sustainability as the foundation for crisis resilience: how can the state and private enterprise strengthen Estonia’s resilience?”.
• At the 2025 Opinion Festival (Arvamusfestival), our assistant lawyer Ere Mai Kool moderated a discussion, “Security begins on the seabed. Who is responsible for damaged submarine cables and how do we defend the Baltic Sea?”, which explored how we can actively defend ourselves against hostile activity by aggressor states in the Baltic Sea, and whether – and how – international maritime law allows for this.
• In May 2025, at the DefenceTech Meetup held as part of the international technology and start-up conference Latitude59, Kaupo Lepasepp presented our Shared Mission programme to an audience of 400 entrepreneurs.

We keep national defence in the public eye

We keep national defence topics constantly present in the written press, on radio and on television so as to underscore their importance and provide explanations to the Estonian public.

• The February 2026 episode of the Sorainen Frequency (Soraineni sagedus) podcast focused on national defence and the defence industry in light of National Defence Month. The episode was hosted by our senior associates Mario Sõrm and Helery Maidlas, and the guests were Indrek Kangur, head of legal at Milrem, and Robin Teever.
• In an opinion piece published in Delfi Ärileht in November 2025, “Estonia’s drone game, or the dangerous delays in procurement”, Mario Sõrm and our associate Stenver Pärn discuss issues related to defence procurement.
• In November 2025, Aku Sorainen spoke on the Delfi programme Special Forces Stories (Eriväelase jutud) about proposed amendments to the Weapons Act.
• In October 2025, our former partner Karin Madisson, a member of the Estonian Defence League, and Robin Teever wrote in Eesti Päevaleht that leaving the potential of women in national defence untapped is unwise.
• In September 2025, our senior associates Marcus Niin and Kristi Aer appeared on the morning programme Terevisioon to discuss the news stories that had caught their attention. Russian fighter jets’ violation of Estonian airspace and the aftermath of this featured prominently.
• The justification of fear of war must not be used in public and political debate to excuse our own systemic failures and omissions, wrote our counsel Kärt Anna Maire Kelder in Eesti Päevaleht in September 2025.
• On the morning show on Äripäev radio in September 2025, Aku Sorainen said that the defence industry is the trump card Estonia has up its sleeve.
• On the Laser programme in May 2025, Aku Sorainen said that ordinary people should take a greater interest in developing their marksmanship skills and in owning firearms – which is why he has taken the lead in initiating amendments to the Weapons Act.
• Aku Sorainen put together a substantial package of proposals for amending the Weapons Act, having previously consulted nearly 100 people and taken part in consultation meetings at the Ministry of the Interior, as reported by Aktuaalne kaamera in April 2025.

The contribution of our people to national defence

Members of our leadership team are recognised every year with defence sector medals of merit, letters of appreciation and other honours.

• The board of the Academic sub-district of the Tallinn regional unit of the Estonian Defence League honoured our former partner Karin Madisson with a medal of merit on the 100th anniversary of the sub-district. Karin also received a letter of appreciation from the chief of the Northern territorial defence district of the Tallinn regional unit.
• Our Estonian Defence League members and reservists take part in exercises, contribute as active citizens beyond ordinary requirements and regularly receive various exercise-based commendations and citations. Mario Sõrm took part in the Kevadtorm (Spring Storm) exercise in the press unit, where he also helped promote participation in national defence.

527 employers received the “Supporter of national defence” recognition this year. Photo: Arno Mikkor.

We are honoured to receive this recognition and sincerely thank everyone who, together with us, contributes to Estonia’s national defence.