Disputes on Issues of Protection of Land Ownership Rights and Labor Relations: Review of the Practice of the Civil Cassation Court of the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court published its monthly review of the current judicial practice of the Civil Cassation Court for June 2026.

The review highlights the most significant legal conclusions that will shape uniform judicial practice. These conclusions, grouped by various categories of cases, include:

I. Disputes Arising from the

Protection of Ownership Rights

• Auxiliary Premises: Premises in an apartment building are considered auxiliary only if their functional purpose, location, and manner of use ensure the building's operation or serve more than one residential or non-residential premise. A storage room for residents, not essential for the functioning of the apartment building, is not an auxiliary premise but an independent non-residential one.

• Housing in Temporarily Occupied Territories: The ownership of other residential real estate in temporarily occupied Ukrainian territory, where the owner has no actual or legal possibility to reside or exercise other ownership rights, indicates the absence of other housing within the meaning of the Law of Ukraine "On the Moratorium on Foreclosure of Property of Citizens of Ukraine Provided as Security for Loans in Foreign Currency." Paragraph 5 of this Law applies to all territories of Ukraine where a legal regime of temporary occupation is established by law.

II. Disputes Arising from Land Relations

• Gratuitous Transfer of Land: A decision by a local self-government body on the gratuitous transfer of a land plot into ownership requires at least two-thirds of the total council composition's votes. Fractional values in this calculation are not subject to rounding down. Adopting such a decision with fewer votes signifies a lack of proper will from the landowner, and the plot is considered to have left communal ownership against the owner's will.

III. Disputes Arising from Transactions, Including Contracts

• Investment Contract in Construction: Issuing a receipt to the customer for a cash receipt order, confirming a cash deposit under an investment contract in construction, creates a presumption that the executor accepted the funds. Deficiencies in the cash receipt order or exceeding the cash transaction limit do not refute the fact of depositing funds; they only indicate possible violations of cash discipline.

• Termination of Power of Attorney Contract: In the event of a principal's unilateral refusal of a power of attorney contract under Part 2 of Article 1008 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, funds received by the attorney under this contract must be returned to the principal if the power of attorney was not executed. Upon termination of the power of attorney contract, the legal basis for the attorney to retain such funds ceases, which provides grounds for applying Article 1212 of the Civil Code of Ukraine.

IV. Disputes Arising from Labour Relations

• Teacher-Coach's Salary During Military Service: A coach-teacher at a children and youth sports school is considered a pedagogical worker, to whom the guarantees of Part 2 of Article 57 of the Law of Ukraine "On Education" apply. A pedagogical worker called up for military service during mobilisation retains their previous average salary for the period until 24 December 2023.

V. Disputes Arising from Family Relations

• Changing a Child's Surname: If one parent objects, changing a child's surname is permitted only if it is established to be in the child's best interests, considering each parent's fulfilment of parental duties and other significant circumstances. Maintaining close relationships and participation in upbringing by the parent living separately precludes changing the surname if such a change promotes alienation between the parent and the child.

VI. Cases of Separate Proceedings

• Military Service and Guardianship: The mere fact of military service is not an automatic and unconditional obstacle to appointing a serviceman as guardian of an incapacitated person. The possibility of a serviceman exercising their right to be appointed guardian, which may subsequently serve as grounds for dismissal from military service for family reasons, directly depends on the presence or absence of other persons who perform or can realistically perform such guardianship, among other factors.

VII. Application of Procedural Law Norms

• Judicial Control over Debtor-Bankrupt Enforcement: Judicial control over the enforcement of decisions concerning a debtor-bankrupt is exercised within the bankruptcy case. After the opening of proceedings in the debtor's bankruptcy case, all property disputes and claims that may affect the size or composition of the liquidation estate are to be considered by the commercial court within the bankruptcy case. This includes complaints filed under judicial control over the enforcement of court decisions regarding such a debtor.

• Court Fee Exemption for Combatants: Combatants are exempt from paying court fees in cases related to the protection of their social rights, regardless of their procedural status. This exemption applies whether they are plaintiffs or defendants. Imposing the obligation to pay court fees on a combatant solely based on their procedural status as a defendant constitutes an incorrect application of Paragraph 13 of Part 1 of Article 5 of the Law of Ukraine "On Court Fees."

• Prosecutor's Representation of State Interests: The prosecutor represents the interests of the state in court only subsidiarily, i.e., if the authorised state body fails to exercise or improperly exercises its protection, or if such a body is absent. The prosecutor's failure to address such a body before filing a lawsuit and to justify the grounds for representation under Article 23 of the Law of Ukraine "On the Prosecutor's Office" is grounds for dismissal of the lawsuit.

VIII. Disputes Regarding Complaints Against Decisions, Actions, or Inactions of the State Executor or Other Official of the State Executive Service

• Seizure of Debtor's Property: The seizure of a debtor's property is a derivative measure of compulsory enforcement of a court decision, which cannot exist autonomously and indefinitely without open enforcement proceedings or a real possibility of enforcement. Maintaining the seizure for a prolonged period (more than 10 years) after the termination of proceedings and destruction of its materials, given the expiration of deadlines for presenting the enforcement document for execution, constitutes an unjustified interference with the person's right to peaceful possession of their property.

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