Anastasiia Yakimova, an attorney and member of the Center for Labor Law and Social Security of the National University of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, shared insights on the exemption from court fees in disputes related to the protection of military servicemembers’ rights during a professional development event at the National University of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine.
The lecturer thoroughly analyzed the exemption from court fees in disputes related to the protection of military servicemembers’ rights, focusing on:
1. Legal regulation.
2. Mechanism of exemption from court fees.
3. Judicial practice.
Regarding the characteristics of the exemption from court fees in disputes related to the protection of military servicemembers’ rights, the emphasis was on the following:
1. Legal regulation
- Constitution of Ukraine:
- Art. 1: Ukraine is a sovereign, independent, democratic, social, and legal state.
- Art. 2: human being, their life and health, honor and dignity, inviolability and security are recognized in Ukraine as the highest social value. Human rights and freedoms and their guarantees determine the content and direction of state activities. The state is responsible to the individual for its actions. The affirmation and ensuring of human rights and freedoms are the main duty of the state.
- Art. 43: everyone has the right to work, which includes the opportunity to earn a living by work that they freely choose or to which they freely consent. The state creates conditions for citizens to fully exercise the right to work, guarantees equal opportunities in choosing a profession and type of work, implements programs of vocational training, preparation, and retraining of personnel according to social needs. Part 5 of this article specifies that citizens are guaranteed protection against unlawful dismissal.
- Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine:
- Art. 133: the amount of court fees, the procedure for their payment, refund, and exemption from payment are established by law.
- Art. 136: the court, taking into account the financial situation of the party, may by its ruling defer or installments payment of the court fee for a specified period in the manner provided by law, but not more than until the court decision in the case is made.
- Art. 136: on the grounds specified in the first part of this article, the court may, in the manner provided by law, reduce the amount of court expenses due for the consideration of the case or exempt from their payment.
- Law of Ukraine “On Court Fees”:
Article 5. The following are exempt from paying court fees during the consideration of cases in all courts:
- plaintiffs – in cases of recovery of wages and reinstatement at work (para. 1 pt.1);
- persons with disabilities as a result of World War II and the families of soldiers (partisans) who died or went missing, and persons equated to them in the established order (para.8 pt.1);
- participants in hostilities, victims of participants in the Revolution of Dignity, Heroes of Ukraine – in cases related to the violation of their rights (para.13 pt.1);
- individuals (except business entities) – creditors who apply with monetary claims to the debtor for payment of arrears of wages, obligations due to harm to life and health of citizens, payment of author’s remuneration and alimony, – after the announcement of the commencement of bankruptcy proceedings in a case of bankruptcy (insolvency), as well as after notification of the recognition of the debtor as bankrupt (para. 15 pt. 1).
- Law of Ukraine “On the Status of War Veterans and Guarantees of Their Social Protection”:
This Law defines the legal status of war veterans, ensures the creation of proper conditions for their livelihood, and promotes the formation of respectful attitude towards them in society.
War veterans are persons who participated in the defense of the Motherland or in combat operations on the territory of other states. War veterans include: participants in hostilities, persons with disabilities due to war, war participants (Art. 4 of the Law).
Participants in hostilities are persons who participated in the performance of combat tasks to defend the Motherland as part of military units, formations, associations of all types and branches of the Armed Forces of the active army (fleet), in partisan detachments and underground and other formations both in wartime and in peacetime / The list of units that were part of the active army and other formations is determined by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (Art. 5 of the Law).
This Law defines the legal status of war veterans, ensures the creation of proper conditions for their livelihood, and promotes the formation of respectful attitude towards them in society.
Participants in hostilities are recognized as persons specified in Art. 6 of the Law.
Privileges for participants in hostilities and persons equated to them are determined by Art. 12 of the Law.
War veterans and family members of deceased (deceased) war veterans, family members of deceased (deceased) Defenders of Ukraine receive free legal assistance on issues related to their social protection and are exempt from court costs related to the consideration of such issues (part 2 of Art. 22 of the Law).
2. Mechanism of Exemption from Court Fees
The mechanism of exemption from court fees using procedural codes and the Law of Ukraine “On Court Fees”:
- Establishing valid grounds for exemption from court fees (in accordance with Art. 5 of the Law of Ukraine “On Court Fees”).
- Analysis of copies of documents confirming the facts on the basis of which a person is entitled to exemptions from court fees.
- Creating and submitting to the court, along with the statement of claim, a motion for exemption from court fees with relevant attachments – copies of documents confirming the facts on the basis of which a person is exempt from paying court fees.
- The court, in the manner provided by law, may reduce the amount of court expenses due for the consideration of the case or exempt from their payment (part 3 of Art. 136 of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine, part 1 of Art. 133 of the Code of Administrative Procedure of Ukraine).
e-Veteran – a system based on the Unified State Register of War Veterans.
The goal of the system is to increase the level of social protection of war veterans through online monitoring of the realization of their rights and guarantees.
Note that according to the position of the Supreme Court in case No. 826/12929/17 of February 27, 2020, the determining factor for applying paragraph 12 of part 1 of Article 5 of the Law of Ukraine “On Court Fees” is the presence of the status of a servicemember (or a conscript or reservist called up for training (or verification) and special gatherings) at the time of filing the relevant statement of claim (appeal, etc.).
3. Judicial Practice:
- Resolution of the Cassation Administrative Court as part of the Supreme Court of Ukraine dated January 29, 2025, in case No. 600/3723/24-a on a claim against the Main Department of the Pension Fund of Ukraine in the Chernivtsi region to recognize unlawful actions and obligations to take actions.
- Ruling of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court on September 11, 2024, in civil case No. 567/79/23 on a claim to declare the agreement on early termination of the lease agreement for land invalid and cancel its state registration.
- Separate opinion of the judge of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of Ukraine Tkachuk O. S. on the ruling of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court on September 11, 2024, in civil case No. 567/79/23:
According to paragraph 13 of part 1 of Article 5 of Law No. 3674-VI on exemption from paying court fees during the consideration of cases in all courts, participants in hostilities, victims of participants in the Revolution of Dignity, Heroes of Ukraine are exempt from paying court fees in cases related to the violation of their rights. Law No. 3674-VI does not contain a reservation regarding the scope of issues that provide grounds for exemption from paying court fees to participants in hostilities. I believe that the privilege guaranteed by the state in Law No. 3674-VI should be applied to any appeals of participants in hostilities to the court for the protection of their rights, freedoms, and legitimate interests in any area of life, regardless of the nature, subject, and grounds of the claim. Considering the above, I believe that the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court should have considered case No. 567/79/23 and decided on the issue of departing from its conclusion set out in the ruling of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court on October 9, 2019, in case No. 9901/311/19. The decision of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court should formulate a legal position according to which participants in hostilities, victims of participants in the Revolution of Dignity, Heroes of Ukraine are exempt from paying court fees when filing claims related to the protection of their rights, freedoms, and legitimate interests in any sphere of life.
- Ruling of the Trostyanetsky District Court of Vinnytsia region dated January 2, 2025, in case No. 147/2/25 on bringing to administrative responsibility for committing administrative offenses provided for in part 3 of Article 172-20 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses.
- Ruling of the Cassation Administrative Court as part of the Supreme Court of Ukraine dated November 21, 2023, in case No. 520/10453/23 on a claim to declare inaction unlawful and obligations to take certain actions.
- Ruling of the Cassation Administrative Court as part of the Supreme Court of Ukraine dated December 12, 2023, in case No. 600/1927/23-a on a claim to declare refusal unlawful and obligations to take actions.