When a Violation of the Evidence Examination Procedure Is Material: The Supreme Court's Response
A violation of the procedure for examining evidence is material only when it prevented the court from making a lawful and reasoned decision. If the verdict contains no reference to the document as evidence confirming the guilt of the person, any violations regarding the procedure of its examination do not affect the correctness of the court's conclusions and the legality of the decision made. This conclusion was made by the panel of judges of the First Judicial Chamber of the Criminal Cassation Court of the Supreme Court on 12.05.2026 in case No. 175/272/23.
Positions of the Courts of First and Appellate Instances
The courts of previous instances found the accused guilty and sentenced him under Part 4 of Article 185 of the Criminal Code.
In the cassation appeal, the defense counsel draws attention to the fact that the written evidence provided by the prosecutor regarding the presence of fuel injectors in the company's warehouse — the "Commercial Invoice" document — was examined by the court formally. The court did not ensure its announcement and thorough examination, since the criminal case materials lack a translation of this document into the state language, and the prosecution did not provide such a translation in the manner prescribed by the Criminal Procedure Code. At the same time, it is noted that this document, contrary to Part 2 of Article 248 of the Customs Code of Ukraine, lacks the imprints of the relevant customs securities (stamps of the customs control authority), which are mandatory for such documents as invoices in case of acceptance of goods imported from abroad into Ukraine for proper customs clearance.
Position of the Criminal Cassation Court of the Supreme Court
The decisions of the courts of previous instances were left unchanged.
The panel of judges of the Criminal Cassation Court indicated that the arguments of the appeal regarding the formal examination of the "Commercial Invoice" document by the court without its announcement are unfounded for the following reasons.
According to the requirements of procedural law, a violation of the procedure for examining evidence is material only when it prevented the court from making a lawful and reasoned decision. Moreover, according to the requirements of the Criminal Procedure Code, the court motivates its decision only by the evidence to which it directly refers in the verdict.
Since the contested verdict contains no reference to the specified document as evidence confirming the guilt of the accused, any violations regarding the procedure of its examination do not affect the correctness of the court's conclusions and the legality of the decision made.
Therefore, the defense counsel's arguments that this document, contrary to Part 2 of Article 248 of the Customs Code of Ukraine, lacks the imprints of the relevant customs securities (stamps of the customs control authority) are also unfounded.
The resolution of the panel of judges of the First Judicial Chamber of the Criminal Cassation Court of the Supreme Court dated 12.05.2026 in case No. 175/272/23 (proceeding No. 51-4452km25) can be viewed at the link.
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