The University of Eastern Finland (Finnish: Itä-Suomen yliopisto) is a university in Finland with three campuses in Joensuu, Kuopio, and Savonlinna. It was formed in 2010 by a merger of two previously independent universities. The University of Eastern Finland was formed through a merger of two formerly independent universities, the University of Joensuu and the University of Kuopio. These ceased to exist when the University of Eastern Finland began to operate in January 2010. The merger of the University of Joensuu and the University of Kuopio to constitute the University of Eastern Finland was affected by the university sector reform carried out in Finland in 2009–2010. The old Universities Act of 1997 was replaced by the new Universities Act of 2009 (558/2009). The new Universities Act further extended the autonomy of universities by giving them an independent legal personality, either as public corporations or as foundations. At the same time, the universities’ management and decision-making system were reformed. The Finnish Parliament passed the Universities Act on 16 June 2009.