During the first quarter of 2025, the High Council of Justice decided to dismiss 64 judges
47 judges were dismissed under general circumstances, namely:
- 46 judges were dismissed due to resignations, including:
- 1 judge of a local court was dismissed due to resignation at their own request
Under special circumstances, the High Council of Justice dismissed 17 judges, namely:
- for committing a significant disciplinary offense - 12;
- on the basis of subparagraph 4 of paragraph 16¹ of Section XV “Transitional Provisions” of the Constitution of Ukraine in accordance with the submissions with the recommendation of the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine - 5.
During the first three months of 2025, the HCJ decided to submit to the President of Ukraine a proposal to appoint 36 judges to local courts, including:
• 33 judges to local general courts;
• 3 judges to local commercial courts.
The HCJ received 69 reports of interference in the professional activities of judges in the administration of justice and actions that violate guarantees of judicial independence or undermine the authority of justice between January – March 2025. Taking into account reports received in previous periods, the Council has considered 46 reports from judges since the beginning of this year.
Based on the results of reviewing 25 reports of interference with the administration of justice, 25 decisions were made to take response measures.
Having considered 21 reports of judges, the Council adopted 12 decisions approving 20 conclusions of the HCJ members on the absence of grounds for taking measures to ensure the independence of judges and the authority of justice.
The HCJ adopted 1 decision on its own initiative within its powers to take measures to ensure the independence of judges and the authority of justice.
Within three months of 2025, the High Council of Justice adopted:
- 3 decisions on granting consent to the detention of a judge and keeping him in custody;
- 1 decision to refuse to satisfy the request for consent to detain a judge and keep him in custody.
Based on the results of consideration of the motions of the Prosecutor General's Office, the HCJ made the following decisions during the mentioned period:
- 3 decisions on satisfaction of motions of the Prosecutor General's Office, including:
- 2 decisions on temporary suspension of a judge from administration of justice in connection with criminal prosecution;
- 1 decision on extension of the term of temporary suspension of a judge from administration of justice in connection with criminal prosecution;
- 1 decision to dismiss a motion to temporarily suspend a judge from administering justice in connection with criminal prosecution.
This decision was made due to the fact that the Deputy Prosecutor General appealed to the HCJ with a motion to extend the term of temporary suspension of a judge of the Babushkinsky District Court of Dnipropetrovsk from administering justice in violation of the statutory deadline.
In accordance with the law, this circumstance makes it impossible to consider this motion and is the basis for returning it without consideration.
On April 22, 2025, the HCJ temporarily suspended a judge of the Korostyshiv District Court of Zhytomyr Region from administering justice in connection with criminal prosecution until the court verdict enters into force or the criminal proceedings are closed.
The judge is suspected of committing a criminal offense under Article 362, paragraph 2, and Article 387, paragraph 2, of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
The judge of the Sambir City District Court of Lviv Region was dismissed
On April 22, 2025, the HCJ decided to dismiss Volodymyr Halyn from the position of judge of the Sambir City District Court of Lviv Region due to his resignation.
The High Council of Justice dismisses two judges for committing a significant disciplinary offense
On April 22, 2025, the HCJ decided to dismiss him on the basis of paragraph 3 of part six of Article 126 of the Constitution of Ukraine:
- Slyva Yurii Mykhailovych from the position of judge of the Kyiv Court of Appeal;
- Shershak Mykola Ivanovych from the position of judge of the Zarichnyi District Court of Sumy.
The decision to bring the judge to disciplinary liability and impose a disciplinary sanction in the form of a motion for dismissal was made by the Second Disciplinary Chamber of the HCJ on April 23, 2025.
Oksana Kvasha: “The judiciary of Ukraine demonstrates resilience and efficiency during the war”
On April 23, 2025, HCJ Deputy Chair of the High Council of Justice, Oksana Kvasha joined the discussion of the results of the study “Review of Democratic Institutions in Ukraine During the War: The Judiciary (2024)”. The event presented key conclusions regarding the functioning of the judiciary under wartime conditions in 2024.
In her speech, Oksana Kvasha emphasized the resilience of the judiciary, which, despite critical circumstances, a significant staff shortage, excessive workload, constant stress and daily danger from rocket attacks, especially in the frontline areas, continues to fulfill its main mission of protecting human rights and freedoms.
Further information is available at the following link.
"Legal Practice"/'Yurydychna Praktyka'