(In)accessibility of justice: why are cases delayed in Ukraine?

The timeframe for court hearings in Ukraine is far from the European criterion of reasonableness. And it seems that the blame for this is now being shifted to lawyers who obstruct justice by filing «unnecessary» motions and challenges. According to some politicians, this should be punished by the court on the spot.
Recently, the media have begun to publish articles that rather one-sidedly cover the problem of the length of time for consideration of cases. The public is being led to believe that the problems of the Ukrainian judiciary are the fault of lawyers who constantly abuse their rights.
A number of draft laws have already been prepared for consideration, according to which judges will establish the facts of abuse by separate rulings and punish the «offenders» themselves or pass their decisions to the disciplinary bodies of the bar. In this case, the latter would play the role of statisticians.
Such a distorted understanding of the issue may violate the principle of independence of the bar.
It is clear that a Ukrainian judge today already has levers to respond to violations of the procedural codes by the parties. And by implementing the principle of legal certainty in the interests of the parties, he or she is empowered to counteract the so-called abuse of rights.
But why is this not happening, why introduce an additional mechanism of pressure that ultimately contradicts the Constitution?
The Ukrainian National Bar Association invites all practicing attorneys to join the discussion of the problem of efficiency and accessibility of justice and to share their own experience in courts:
- what, in your opinion, are the real reasons for the lengthy consideration of cases by Ukrainian courts;
- what do you see as legitimate mechanisms for the courts to implement the principle of legal certainty in the context of observance of reasonable time limits?
- whether you have encountered «abuse of rights» by procedural opponents: both fellow lawyers and representatives of the prosecution, and if so, which are the most common;
- whether judges can abuse their rights, whether you have encountered this in court hearings, if so, in what form it took, which are the most common;
- in which cases motions and statements of lawyers filed in accordance with the procedural law may (or may not) be perceived as abusive and how judges can and should respond to this;
- what part of all the applications and motions filed by you is satisfied by the court (in civil, administrative, commercial and criminal proceedings)
- whether the courts take into account your workload (participation in investigative actions, other proceedings, business trips, illness, etc.) when setting the date and time of court hearings;
- whether you consider the postponement of court hearings due to the absence of a lawyer or prosecutor to be a widespread phenomenon;
- in what forms the «accusatory bias» of the judiciary can affect the duration of criminal proceedings.
Answers to these questions, as well as opinions and examples from your own practice, can be shared until October 18 with the coordinator of the UNBA Committee on Protection of Advocates' Rights and Guarantees of Practice of Law Vitaliy Fedirko (v.fedirko@unba.org.ua).
All the collected information will be analyzed and used in the preparation of the report on the state of efficiency and accessibility of justice, which the UNBA will send to national and international institutions.
Popular news

Discussion
Without the protection of advocates, there will be no fair trials in Ukraine — forum in Odesa
Identifying an advocate with their client undermines the foundations of justice, as it deprives individuals of the opportunity to exercise their right to defense, forces advocates to avoid participating in high-profile cases, and ultimately renders procedural guarantees meaningless. Without this, fair trial is impossible.

Legislation
What data is sufficient to initiate an investigation – UNBA comments on draft law No. 12439
The problem of law enforcement pressure on business remains one of the most acute for the Ukrainian economy. The lack of regulation of certain procedures in the Criminal Procedure Code leads to abuses, as a result of which entrepreneurs find themselves in a state of legal uncertainty.

Guarantees of the practice of law
The Verkhovna Rada is waiting for the Minister of Justice to take action on signing the Convention on the protection of t…
Ukraine, which was directly involved in the preparation of the world's first Council of Europe Convention on the protection of the profession of advocate, has still not signed it. There appear to be no formal objections, but no real steps have been taken towards accession either.

Abroad
Australian advocate apologizes in court for fake AI quotes
In Australia, a royal advocate apologized to a judge for submitting documents in a criminal case against a teenager accused of murder that contained fabricated quotes and non-existent court decisions generated by artificial intelligence.

Legislation
Support for the defense industry should not upset local budgets, - UNBA
It is necessary to create additional incentives for enterprises in the defense and industrial complex, while ensuring the balance of the budget system and the predictability of both revenues and expenditures of local self-government.

Legislation
UNBA warns of extreme financial risks for defense industry companies
The lack of transparent control over the activities of the Ministry of Defense as a regulator, as well as excessive sanctions for leaving the Defense City regime, create risks for defense enterprises that could lead to their bankruptcy.

Guarantees of the practice of law
BCU reports interference by a member of the High Council of Justice in the activities of a lawyer and submits officia…
The Bar Council of Ukraine, having considered the statement of advocate Oleksandr Vikhrov, established the fact of interference by Roman Maselko, a member of the High Council of Justice, in the advocacy activities, violation of attorney-client privilege, and exceeding his powers in evaluating a candidate for the position of judge.

Legislation
Consent to arrest advocates must be given by bar self-regulatory bodies
Granting the High Council of Justice the power to give consent to the detention of an advocate or to keep him in custody would be a direct interference in the activities of the Ukrainian advocacy. This contradicts the principle of independence of the advocacy guaranteed by the Constitution and laws.
Publications

Censor.net Protecting advocates – protecting justice: addressing concerns about the new law

Ihor Kolesnykov A BRIEF SUMMARY REGARDING THE APPLICATION OF THE ORDER ON EXTENDED CONFISCATION IN LATVIA REGARDING FINANCIAL ASSETS OF…

Valentyn Gvozdiy WORKING IN A WAR ZONE

Lydia Izovitova Formula of perfection

Sergiy Vylkov Our judicial system is so built that courts do not trust advocates

Iryna Vasylyk Advocacy in the proclamation of Independence of Ukraine

Oleksandr DULSKY When we cross the border of the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court, we get into another department of the National Anti-Corruption…

Vadym Krasnyk The UNBA will work, and all obstacles and restrictions are only temporary inconveniences