EU and Ukraine to recognize, enforce each other’s court decisions

The EU Council has agreed to establish treaty relations with Ukraine under the so-called Judgments Convention, which obliges contracting states to recognize and enforce judgments rendered in civil or commercial cases in other participating states.

“With this decision… the ties between the EU and Ukraine will only become stronger,” Swedish Minister for Justice Gunnar Strömmer said, as cited by the Council’s press service.

The Convention will also serve as an important instrument to facilitate international trade, according to the report.

The Hague Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters was concluded in 2019. Ukraine ratified it in 2022.

Under the Convention, treaty relations between Ukraine and the European Union will be established from Sept. 1, 2023, if neither party objects to them.

“European Union member states consider that there are no fundamental obstacles, such as related to the independence and efficiency of the judiciary, the fight against corruption or the respect of fundamental rights, which could prevent the EU from entering into treaty relations with Ukraine,” reads the Council’s report.

Watchdogs say Ukraine’s judicial reform on brink of catastrophe

Ukraine’s leading anti-corruption watchdogs issued a statement on June 24 saying that the Ethics Council, the judicial reform’s main body, has undermined trust in the process by approving tainted candidates for top jobs and vetoing an anti-corruption crusader. “Since the Ethics Council’s decisions…

Kyiv IndependentOleg Sukhov