Consideration of the appointment of judge Nataliya Movchan to the Appeals Chamber of the HACC put on hold
The High Council of Justice reviewed the materials regarding the submission to the President of Ukraine for the appointment of Nataliya Movchan as a judge of the Appeals Chamber of the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC). The candidate herself was present at the meeting. The High Council of Justice received a recommendation from the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine (decision dated June 22, 2026) and the full materials of her personal file.
About the candidate for the Appeals Chamber of the HACC
Nataliya Movchan is a citizen of Ukraine. In 2001, she graduated from the Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University with a degree in "Law." By a decree of the President of Ukraine dated April 12, 2019, she was appointed as a judge of the first composition of the High Anti-Corruption Court.
During the first five years of her work at the HACC, she performed the functions of an investigative judge. Since 2023, she began hearing cases on the merits. In 2026, under her chairmanship, three verdicts were issued in criminal proceedings and one ruling on the application of medical measures was adopted.
Questions from the members of the High Council of Justice and the candidate's explanations
During the meeting, members of the High Council of Justice asked Nataliya Movchan a number of questions, to which she provided detailed answers.
Motivation for participating in the competition
The candidate explained that her main motivation is the results and quality of the work she performed at the High Anti-Corruption Court. She believes that the accumulated experience and practice will be useful specifically in the Appeals Chamber of the HACC. Nataliya Movchan emphasized that the material component and the status of a judge are not decisive for her; the key factor is the opportunity to perform the procedural role of an appellate judge with greater responsibility for final decisions.
Report on interference in the judge's activities
Members of the High Council of Justice were interested in the circumstances under which Nataliya Movchan filed a report on interference. The candidate explained that in one criminal proceeding where she was an investigative judge, participants repeatedly filed recusals against her (11 times during the consideration of 17 motions). She regarded this as an abuse of procedural rights aimed at delaying the proceedings. In particular, the last recusal was filed at the moment when she had already heard the positions of four defense attorneys and was about to retire to the deliberation room. The consideration of her report on interference lasted more than a month. She also mentioned incidents of unauthorized access to her email, when messages about allegedly existing court proceedings without a lawsuit were received.
Information about possible preparation of a draft decision for another judge
Members of the High Council of Justice were interested in information from open sources that a draft decision in the case of another HACC judge allegedly bore the authorship of Nataliya Movchan. The candidate categorically stated that she has never prepared draft decisions in cases considered by other judges. She explained that the file was sent by her colleague, not her. According to Nataliya Movchan, creating a file with someone else's authorship is technically possible, and this was confirmed by the court's IT specialists.
Trip to the territory of the Russian Federation in 2016
One of the questions concerned the candidate's one-time stay in the territory of the Russian Federation. Nataliya Movchan explained that on March 12, 2016, she made a one-day trip to Belgorod for the wedding of her nephew (to the bride's parents). She went instead of the nephew's mother, who could not travel. The trip was family-related, on a non-working day, by her brother's car, without meetings with other persons. The candidate emphasized that at that time she considered it an urgent family need and made this decision despite understanding her public status as a judge.
Current workload and case review deadlines
Nataliya Movchan spoke about her current workload and explained the reasons for the repeated automated redistribution of some cases (in particular, due to colleagues' business trips to the High Qualification Commission of Judges). She noted that she controls the deadlines for bringing to criminal responsibility in cases under her proceedings and does not see critical risks.
Following the review, the High Council of Justice announced a break in this case for additional examination of the materials.
As previously reported by "Judicial and Legal Newspaper", the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine, based on the results of the competition announced on June 3, 2025, provided recommendations for seven candidates for appointment as judges of the Appeals Chamber of the High Anti-Corruption Court. In particular, recommendations were received by:
- Olena Vitaliivna Tanasevych
- Katerina Oleksandrivna Sikora
- Igor Borysovych Chaikin
- Inna Anatoliivna Smal
- Nataliya Oleksiivna Doroshenko
- Mykola Anatoliiovych Rubashchenko
- Nataliya Volodymyrivna Movchan
The editorial office will continue to monitor the further consideration of this issue, as well as the review of materials regarding submissions to the President of Ukraine for the appointment of judges to the Appeals Chamber of the HACC.
