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Off Track from European Integration: Who in Kyiv Is Undermining Ukraine’s Path to the EU

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Mykhailo Zhernakov, Executive Director of the DEJURE Foundation Kateryna Shevchuk, Communications Manager at the DEJURE Foundation Remember 2020? Not COVID, but the real constitutional catastrophe, when the Constitutional Court of Ukraine (CCU) attempted to destroy electronic asset declarations. The motion to the Court was initiated by 48 MPs: remnants of the pro-Russian Yanukovych-era system, representatives… Continue reading Off Track from European Integration: Who in Kyiv Is Undermining Ukraine’s Path to the EU

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… Continue reading How Did the Week Go for the High Council of Justice? May 19–23, 2025

Is the SBI Hiding Motion to Search the HQCJ Premises?

Members of the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ) have appealed to the High Council of Justice (HCJ) due to pressure from the State Bureau of Investigations (SBI). In March 2025, the SBI conducted searches at the HQCJ premises and at the home of Oleksii Omelian, the Commission’s Deputy Chair. Subsequently, the Bureau began launching… Continue reading Is the SBI Hiding Motion to Search the HQCJ Premises?

International Experts Being Phased Out: Will the Authorities Let the Courts Return to the Yanukovych Era?

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By DEJURE Foundation, Automaidan NGO, and Anti-Corruption Action Center This summer may bring good news for judges longing for the rollback of judicial reform and the return of the impunity they enjoyed back in 2013. On June 1, the tenure of international experts on the Selection Commission for the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ)… Continue reading International Experts Being Phased Out: Will the Authorities Let the Courts Return to the Yanukovych Era?

The Council of Judges Nominates Low-Integrity Candidates Again: Who Will Select Judges for the New Administrative Courts?

Олена Ганечко, Олег Головенко, Віталій Кальник, Костянтин Кобилянський, Євген Синельников

On May 1, the Council of Judges of Ukraine (CoJ) published a list of nominees for the Expert Council, which will vet candidates for judicial positions in the two new administrative courts. Unfortunately, the CoJ has consistently nominated low-integrity candidates to key selection bodies. Among past examples are: Yurii Triasun, who released from custody a… Continue reading The Council of Judges Nominates Low-Integrity Candidates Again: Who Will Select Judges for the New Administrative Courts?

Only One Month Left in the Tenure of International Experts Critical to Reform

By June 1, the tenure of international experts in the Selection Commission for appointing members of the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ) will expire. Once they leave, odious domestic institutions will appoint their own representatives to the Commission — a move that would, without exaggeration, mark the collapse of the judicial reform. Who will… Continue reading Only One Month Left in the Tenure of International Experts Critical to Reform

High Anti-Corruption Court Imposes Bail on HQCJ Member Luhanskyi

Володимир Луганський

On April 30, the High Anti-Corruption Court imposed a preventive measure in the form of bail on Volodymyr Luhanskyi, a member of the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ). The bail was set at 242,000 UAH. The case concerns Luhanskyi’s fake academic degree, as first reported by the Anti-Corruption Action Center. In 2011, Luhanskyi received… Continue reading High Anti-Corruption Court Imposes Bail on HQCJ Member Luhanskyi

If international experts leave: consequences for Ukraine’s judicial reform

The tenure of international experts in the Selection Commission, the body responsible for selecting members of the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ), expires on June 1, 2025. Unless the authorities act to extend their mandate, future HQCJ selections will proceed without independent experts’ involvement. Their seats will be filled by representatives of the prosecution… Continue reading If international experts leave: consequences for Ukraine’s judicial reform

HQCJ Member Luhanskyi Suspected of Receiving Payments for a Fake Academic Degree

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have issued a formal notice of suspicion to Volodymyr Luhanskyi, a member of the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ), for receiving unlawful salary supplements based on a fraudulent academic degree. The Anti-Corruption Action Centre first uncovered the fake diploma. Luhanskyi received a… Continue reading HQCJ Member Luhanskyi Suspected of Receiving Payments for a Fake Academic Degree

HQCJ Decides Which Judges Will Be Left “Hanging” After the Start of the Appellate Court Competition

The High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ) is about to shift its focus almost entirely to the upcoming competition for appellate courts, leaving little time to continue evaluating sitting judges’ fitness for office. Right now, the Commission is determining which judges will remain in limbo, potentially for months or even years, as they await their… Continue reading HQCJ Decides Which Judges Will Be Left “Hanging” After the Start of the Appellate Court Competition

Supreme Court Against Transparency: A New Harmful Ruling

The Cassation Administrative Court (acting as a court of first instance) has ruled that information from judges’ and judicial candidates’ family ties and integrity declarations is confidential and allowed authorities to stop updating the relevant open data set. This decision was made in case No. 990/406/24. What is the case about, and why is the… Continue reading Supreme Court Against Transparency: A New Harmful Ruling

The State Bureau of Investigation Churns Out Cases Against the HQCJ

The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) has opened several new criminal proceedings against members of the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine (HQCJ), according to a statement by the Anti-Corruption Action Center on March 21. This time, HQCJ members Roman Sabodash and Ruslan Melnyk have come under SBI scrutiny. The basis for launching the… Continue reading The State Bureau of Investigation Churns Out Cases Against the HQCJ