How Did the Week Go for the High Council of Justice? May 19–23, 2025
It was a busy week for the High Council of Justice (HCJ): judges suspected of bribery, judges who covered for drunk drivers, or drove drunk themselves… A pattern of selective accountability emerged, where some judges were dismissed while others were spared with softer disciplinary actions. DEJURE Foundation outlines whom the HCJ sanctioned and whom it shielded in its weekly digest.
Negative decisions
Iryna Blazhko – Judge of Shevchenkivskyi District Court, Poltava
Remained in office
Case background: Blazhko communicated with judge Novak regarding a case she was considering. Novak has been charged with soliciting a $10,000 bribe from a party in that case to secure a favourable decision from Blazhko. She regularly updated Novak on the case involving unpaid insurance compensation and even instructed the interested party on actions to take.
In November 2024, the HCJ’s Third Disciplinary Chamber decided to dismiss Blazhko. She appealed, and during the full HCJ hearing, seven members (Burlakov, Usyk, Kravchenko, Bondarenko, Kotelevets, Kovbiy, Moroz) voted against dismissal. Instead, they imposed a milder sanction: a 3-month suspension from judicial duties.
This ruling sends a message to other low-integrity judges that even serious misconduct, such as backroom deals, might go unpunished.
Hanna Yatsenko – Judge of Lysianka District Court, Cherkasy Oblast
Not dismissed despite HQCJ recommendation
Case background: Yatsenko repeatedly helped drunk drivers evade justice, either by violating timeframes or releasing them under surety. She also underreported the value of her land and failed to declare assets, including a 2013 Skoda Octavia and its sale proceeds. She also failed to declare a land plot in Kyiv Oblast.
The HQCJ recommended her dismissal. Yet HCJ member and rapporteur Serhii Burlakov found the grounds insufficient. He and nine other members voted to reject her dismissal and instead referred her back for another interview with the HQCJ. Only five HCJ members opposed this decision.
Yatsenko is the fourth judge whose dismissal recommendation has been returned by the HCJ in recent months, undermining the qualification assessment process and blocking the cleansing of the judiciary.
Positive decisions
Daria Sakun – Judge of Zvenyhorodka District Court, Cherkasy Oblast
Dismissal upheld
Case background: Sakun was involved in a daytime celebration of a new car with fellow judge Borodiychuk. Witnesses reported two possibly intoxicated individuals leaving a parking lot and hitting another vehicle—Sakun was reportedly behind the wheel.
During disciplinary hearings for Borodiychuk, HCJ members reviewed police bodycam footage. He was dismissed for refusing a sobriety test while driving. Sakun’s actions were reviewed for ethical violations, and she was also referred for dismissal. The HCJ upheld this decision.
Valentyn Tomylko – Judge of Poltava Court of Appeals
Dismissal upheld
Case background: Tomylko appeared in NABU recordings conspiring with judges Haliyonkin and Kryuchko to influence another judge’s handling of his son’s drunk-driving case. He was also implicated in a $600 bribe seized during a search by NABU. He allegedly communicated with a lawyer off the record and promised to “fix” the case.
Based on these facts, the Third Disciplinary Chamber recommended his dismissal, which was fully upheld by the HCJ.
Victor Shulezhko – Judge of the District Administrative Court of Kyiv (DACK)
Reprimand with 1-month salary deduction
Case background: In 2020, Shulezhko sided with a developer involved in illegal construction in Protasiv Yar, halting decisions that would have revoked their permits. He later annulled Kyiv City Council decisions meant to restore green zone status to the area.
According to late soldier and activist Roman Ratushnyi, the judge’s decision was used by developers as a legal precedent to block further cases. In 2021, Ratushnyi filed a complaint with the HCJ. The case was only opened in 2025, thanks to Disciplinary Inspector Pleskach, who marked it a priority. Shulezhko received a reprimand and was stripped of bonuses for one month.
Mixed Decision
Iryna Malekh – Judge of the Western Commercial Court of Appeal
Detention denied, temporarily suspended
Case background: Malekh is implicated in a $1 million bribery case involving Judges Artymovych, Yurkevych (ret.), and Plotnytskyi, who allegedly sought to influence court decisions, including case No. 914/386/24, which Malekh ruled on as part of a panel.
During NABU searches, $20,000 in marked bills were found at her home. The day before the bribe was delivered, she met with Plotnytskyi, though she claimed the money was a loan for her daughter’s treatment, without any supporting documents.
The HCJ’s Second Disciplinary Chamber initiated the case ex officio. Although the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office sought her pre-trial detention, the HCJ denied the request. However, they unanimously suspended her until June 9.
Throughout the week of May 19–23, the HCJ showed inconsistency in its approach to judicial accountability. Judges who violate integrity standards and ethical norms, damaging public trust in the judiciary, should not remain in office. Yet, some HCJ members continue to oppose dismissals or push for lenient penalties, undermining efforts to clean up Ukraine’s judiciary.
