Draft law proposes new court to replace the DACK: Vovk’s assosiates set to select judges for the High Court for Public Law Disputes

Yesterday, on November 14, the Verkhovna Rada registered a draft law on establishing the High Court for Public Law Disputes (HCPD), intended to replace the scandal-plagued District Administrative Court of Kyiv (DACK), which was dissolved in 2022. However, the proposal raises concerns that the new court could become another politically controlled institution.

The HCPD is expected to handle cases against national-level government bodies. The establishment of this new court by the end of December 2024 is a structural benchmark of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The European Commission has also stressed its importance in a recent report.

For the new court to avoid becoming a “second DACK”, it must adhere to the highest standards, with candidates evaluated by independent experts, including international ones, through an open and transparent competition. The IMF has previously insisted that the HCPD should be established following the model of the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC), with the selection conducted by a body entirely composed of international experts, such as the Public Council of International Experts (PCIE). However, it seems the Ukrainian government is seeking to diminish the role of international experts in the selection process.

Draft law No. 12206 disregards this entirely. Instead, it proposes that judges for the HCPD be selected by an Expert Council composed of 50% national experts. These experts would be nominated by none other than the odious Council of Judges, led by Bohdan Monich, a figure closely associated with Pavlo Vovk and Andriy Portnov.

The likely quality of such a selection process is predictable. The Council of Judges has previously nominated dubious figures to other bodies, such as Volodymyr Siverin to the Ethics Council and Yaroslav Romaniuk (head of the Supreme Court under Yanukovych) and Volodymyr Kuzmenko (featured on the “Vovk tapes”) to the Advisory Group of Experts.

DEJURE Foundation will soon provide a detailed analysis of this draft law and its risks. We hope that critical flaws in the draft law will be addressed during its adoption process.