Overview of the results of the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine in May 2026

OVERVIEW OF THE RESULTS OF THE HIGH QUALIFICATION COMMISSION OF JUDGES OF UKRAINE   May 2026

Procedures of the judicial career

Selection for the position of local court judge

The checking of practical assignments completed as part of the qualification exam for candidates for the position of local court judge and for judges who have expressed an intention to be transferred to another local court is currently underway: 406 in the commercial specialisation; 2,187 in the general specialisation.

The checking of 723 assignments has been completed.

On May 27, 2026, the Commission approved the coded results of the practical asignment in the specialisation of the local general court (fourth stage of the qualification exam) on October 17, 2025 – by participants in the first and second groups, and on November 17, 2025 – by participants in the first group of candidates for the position of local court judge and judges who have expressed an intention to be transferred to another local court.

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Competition to the appellate courts

General statistics of the competition to the appellate courts

By specialisations
Stage	Administrative	Commercial	Criminal	Civil	TOTAL
Applied with applications (1 candidate did not choose a specialisation)	191	185	912	787	2076
Admitted to the competition and qualification assessment	173	160	821	687	1841
Successfully passed a test of knowledge in the field of law and in the specialisation of the relevant court	132	134	703	619	1588
Successfully passed the cognitive abilities test	105	98	507	410	1120
Successfully completed practical assignment	67	83	452	255	857
Ranking of candidates has been approved	43	60	160		263
Recognised as winners of the competition and recommended for the appointment	42	55	97		194
Interviews are ongoing	Completed	Completed	327

 

In May, the Commission conducted interviews with 48 candidates for the positions of judges at the general courts of appeal:

- 25 candidates have confirmed the ability to administer justice (for the Dnipro Court of Appeal – 7,  the Kyiv Court of Appeal – 2, for the Lviv Court of Appeal – 7, and for the Kharkiv Court of Appeal – 9);

- interviews with 12 candidates will be held by the plenary session of the Commission (for the Dnipro Court of Appeal – 2, the Kyiv Court of Appeal – 7, the Lviv Court of Appeal – 1, and for the Kharkiv Court of Appeal – 2).

On May 11, 2026, the Commission approved the ranking of candidates for vacant positions of judges at the Mykolaiv Court of Appeal based on the results of the qualification assessment conducted as part of the competition, and identified 16 winners of the competition. 

On May 20, 2026, decisions were took submitting recommendations to the High Council of Justice regarding the appointment of the winners to positions of judges. The winners comprised 15 judges from local general courts and 1 judge from a local administrative court.

 

 

 

 

 

Submission of recommendations for appointment to the post of judge at the Mykolaiv Court of Appeal

1. Alona Temnikova, a judge of the Zavodskyi District Court of Mykolaiv City
2. Dmytro Chervonenko, a judge of the Nova Kakhovka City Court of Kherson Oblast
3. Vitalii Muruhov, a judge of the Bashtanka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast
4. Volodymyr Bionosenko, a judge of the Mykolaiv District Administrative Court
5. Olena Korsanenkova, a judge of the Beryslav District Court of Kherson Oblast
6. Tetiana Fortuna, a judge of the Pervomaisk City and District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast
7. Pavlo Charychanskyi, a judge of the Veselynivka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast
8. Hennadii Valihurskyi, a judge of the Kamianske District Court of Zaporizhzhia Oblast
9. Alla Kruhlikova, a judge of the Komunarskyi District Court of Zaporizhzhia City
10. Olha Umanska, a judge of the Novyi Buh District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast
11. Tetiana Kartasheva, a judge of the Zavodskyi District Court of Mykolaiv City
12. Oleksandr Harskyi, a judge of the Khadzhybeyskyi District Court of Odesa City
13. Serhii Hlubochenko, a judge of the Vitovka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast
14. Artem Tokariev, a judge of the Pokrovsk City and District Court of Donetsk Oblast
15. Oleksandr Tomashevskyi, a judge of the Kazanka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast
16. Andrii Tustanovskyi, a judge of the Veselynivka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast

On May 27, 2026, the Commission approved the ranking of candidates for vacant positions of judges at the Odesa Court of Appeal based on the results of the qualification assessment conducted as part of the competition, and identified 23 winners, of whom: 15 are judges of local general courts, 1 is a judge of the court of appeal, 1 person has professional experience as a lawyer, and 6 people have professional experience as lawyers and are academics.

 

 

 

 

Winners of the competition for the Odesa Court of Appeal

1. Ruslan Abukhin, a judge of the Prymorskyi District Court of Odesa City.
2. Yurii Bodnaruk, has professional experience as a lawyer, academic.
3. Illia But, has professional experience as a lawyer, academic.
4. Nataliia Varakina, a judge of the Fortetsnyi District Court of Kropyvnytskyi City.
5. Dmytro Hubnytskyi, a judge of the Inhulskyi District Court of Mykolaiv City.
6. Dmytro Kyian, a judge of the Central District Court of Mariupol City, Donetsk Oblast.
7. Nataliia Kolomiiets, a judge of the Kherson Court of Appeal.
8. Petro Kravchenko, a judge of the Tarutyne District Court of Odesa Oblast.
9. Alfiia Kurbanova, a judge of the Shostka City and District Court of Sumy Oblast.
10. Oleksandr Maslenykov, a judge of the Kiliya District Court of Odesa Oblast.
11. Ihor Pavelchenko, has professional experience as a lawyer.
12. Oleksandr Prysakar, a judge of the Izmail City and District Court of Odesa Oblast.
13. Pavlo Prokhorov, a judge of the Kyivskyi District Court of Odesa City.
14. Dmytro Roik, a judge of the Khadzhybeyskyi District Court of Odesa City.
15. Valerii Sopilniak, has professional experience as a lawyer, academic.
16. Olena Tavlui, has professional experience as a lawyer, academic.
17. Tetiana Fedorenko, Central District Court of Mariupol City, Donetsk Oblast.
18. Dmytro Tsekhan, has professional experience as a lawyer, academic.
19. Maryna Shanshyna, a judge of the Lyman City Court of Donetsk Oblast.
20. Tetiana Shevyrina, a judge of the Ochakiv City and District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast.
21. Oleh Shkuta, has professional experience as a lawyer, academic.
22. Artem Shcherbina, a judge of the Livoberezhnyi District Court of Mariupol City, Donetsk Oblast.
23. Ivan Yakovenko, a judge of the Izmail City and District Court of Odesa Oblast.

 

Competition to the High Anti-Corruption Court

In May, the Commission, sitting as a temporary panel, conducted interviews and determined the results of the qualification assessment of 18 candidates for the position of a judge at the High Anti-Corruption Court – all 18 candidates confirmed their ability to administer justice at the High Anti-Corruption Court.

Interviews have been completed with all 22 candidates applying for vacant positions of judges at the High Anti-Corruption Court and its Appeals Chamber.

[more] – in Ukrainian

 

Competition to the Specialised Circuit Administrative Court and Specialised Administrative Court of Appeal

On May 06, 2026, the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine took a decision to schedule the fourth stage of the qualification exam: the completion of the practical assignment in the specialisation of the Specialised Circuit Administrative Court as part of the competition announced by the Commission’s Decision No. 193/zp-25 of October 29, 2025, and the completion of the practical assignment in the specialisation of the Specialised Administrative Court of Appeal within the framework of the competition announced by the Commission’s Decision No. 194/zp-25 of October 29, 2025.

Furthermore, on May 06, 2026, the Commission approved the Methodological Guidelines for the assessment of the practical assignment completed by candidates for the positions of judges of the Specialised Circuit Administrative Court and the Specialised Administrative Court of Appeal during the qualification exam within the framework of the competitions.

On May 18, 2026, 62 candidates for the position of a judge completed the practical assignment in the specialisation of the Specialised Administrative Court of Appeal.

On May 19, 2026, 102 candidates for the position of a judge completed the practical assignment in the specialisation of the Specialised Circuit Administrative Court.

The checking of the practical assignments is ongoing.

Secondments

17 notifications from the State Judicial Administration of Ukraine on secondments were received.

The Commission considered the issues of secondments of judges to 12 courts due to excessive judicial workload.

The Commission considered the issues of early termination of one judge’s secondment and his/her simultaneous secondment.

It was recommended that 2 judges be seconded to the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv City.

Qualification assessment

for suitability of a judge for his/her position held and in connection with the imposition of a disciplinary sanction

On May 13, 2026, the Commission took a decision approving revised versions of the exam syllabuses, the taxonomic characteristics of the anonymous written test, and specific test questions for the exams to be held as part of the qualification assessment of judges of local and appellate courts.

On May 27, 2026, the Commission took a decision setting the date for the exam of seven local court judges as part of:

- qualification assessment in connection with the imposition of a disciplinary sanction;

- qualification assessment for suitability for the position held.

The exam is scheduled for June 15, 2026.

The results of the qualification assessment of 1 judge have been established:

• Ihor Shtulman, a judge of the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal – is not suitable for the position held.

The assessment of 4 judges has been suspended following confirmation of their ability to administer justice in the court of appeal:

• Serhii Hlubochenko, the Vitovka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast;
• Vitalii Muruhov, the Bashtanka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast;
• Andrii Tustanovskyi, the Veselynivka District Court of Mykolaiv Oblast;
• Dmytro Chervonenko, the Nova Kakhovka City Court of Kherson Oblast.

 

Data on the accounting of judges’ positions

The following data are included in the accounts:

on the establishment of 27 new vacant positions of judges:

in local courts - 20:

• local general courts – 15 (resignation [5]; paragraph 3 of part six of Article 126 of the Constitution of Ukraine [1]; of their own volition [2]; appointment to the position of judge of the court of appeal [7]);
• local commercial courts – 2 (resignation [1]; paragraph 3 of part six of Article 126 of the Constitution of Ukraine [1]);
• local administrative courts – 3 (resignation [1]; appointment to the position of judge of the court of appeal [2]);

in courts of appeal – 6:

• in the general courts of appeal – 4 (resignation [4]);
• in the commercial courts of appeal – 1 (paragraph 3 of part six of Article 126 of the Constitution of Ukraine [1]);
• in the administrative courts of appeal – 1 appointment to the position of judge of the court of appeal [1]);

in the Supreme Court – 1:

• The Commercial Cassation Court within the Supreme Court (resignation [1]);

on the filling of 16 vacant positions:

• in the general courts of appeal – 11;
• in the commercial courts of appeal – 1;
• in the administrative courts of appeal – 4.

[more] – in Ukrainian

Sessions

44 sessions were held, of which:

• in plenary composition – 9;
• in chamber composition – 5;
• in Panel composition – 30.

[more] – in Ukrainian

 

140 decisions of the Commission were adopted, of which:

• on selection and appointment of judges – 2;
• on transfer (secondment) of judges – 13;
• on the verification of declarations of family ties and the integrity of judge (candidate for the position of a judge) – 3;
• on qualification assessment of judges – 3;
• on conduction of selection for filling positions of judges in the high specialised courts – 20;
• on conduction of selection for filling positions of judges in the courts of appeal – 85;
• on general issues – 14.

[more] – in Ukrainian

Participation in the events

May 04, 2026 – Meeting with Helena Sancho, First Secretary of the Embassy of Sweden, to discuss avenues for expanding bilateral cooperation.

May 04 and 06, 2026 – Second round of thematic online workshops organised by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine jointly with the EU Project “Support to Justice Sector Reforms in Ukraine (Pravo-Justice III)” on the importance of, and procedures for, fulfilling the interim benchmarks within the framework of the European Union accession negotiations.

May 13, 2026 – High-level event entitled “Rule of Law Roadmap: One Year after Adoption”, dedicated to discussing the results achieved in implementing the Rule of Law Roadmap.

May 13, 2026 – Practical seminar entitled “Enhancing the Practical Application of Twinning and TAIEX Instruments in Ukraine’s European Integration Process”, organised by the National Agency of Ukraine on Civil Service with the support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation in Ukraine.

May 19, 2026 – Monthly meeting with representatives of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Enlargement and the Eastern Neighbourhood (DG ENEST) to assess the state of implementation of Chapters 3 and 4 of the Ukraine Facility Plan.

May 20–22, 2026 – Consultative meeting on trends and challenges in administrative justice in the Eastern Partnership countries, held within the framework of the meeting of the Working Group on Independence of the Association of European Administrative Judges and organised by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in Lisbon, Portugal.

May 29, 2026 – Working meeting dedicated to the presentation of the results of a survey of Ukrainian judges conducted within the framework of the study “Traumatic Stress Responses and Professional Quality of Life of Ukrainian Judges in Times of Polycrisis”, organised by the Council of Europe Project “Support to the Judiciary of Ukraine in Wartime and Post-War Recovery”, the British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL), and the University of Exeter.

 

Litigation

The Commission’s interests were represented in 44 hearings of the Supreme Court.

The Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the Commission as follows:

1. 1. 1. Cases No. 990/483/25 – claim filed by I.A. Fedchenko; No. 990/512/25 – claim filed by O.V. Khabibulina; No. 990/445/25 – claims filed by T.V. Andriiuk, V.S. Veltsen, N.Y. Hora, O.O. Diakovych, O.A. Zinoviev, D.P. Zubrytskyi, O.V. Ivanov, A.L. Ivanchenko, I.S. Kadulina, L.M. Korobchuk, O.M. Kuntsiv, V.Y. Makarov, I.B. Melnyk, H.V. Pavliuk, and A.V. Tsyhanok seeking to declare the decisions unlawful and to compel certain actions (selection procedure: qualification exam, cognitive abilities test).
      2. Case No. 990/149/26 – claim filed by S.S. Syrotkin seeking to declare the decision unlawful and annul it, and to compel certain actions (selection procedure: qualification exam, practical assignment).
      3. Case No. 990/25/26 – claim filed by V.S. Yehorov seeking to declare the decision unlawful and annul it, and to compel certain actions (HACC: qualification exam, practical assignment).
      4. Cases No. 990/79/26 – claim filed by S.I. Vzheshch; No. 990/419/25 – claim filed by I.M. Vasyliuk; No. 990/393/25 – claim filed by
         K.V. Tkachenko seeking to declare the decisions unlawful and annul them, and to compel certain actions (competition to the courts of appeal: interview).
      5. Case No. 990/351/25 – claim filed by M.Y. Kulishenko seeking to declare the decisions unlawful and annul them, and to compel certain actions (competition to the courts of appeal: qualification exam, practical assignment).
      6. Case No. 990/268/25 – claim filed by V.V. Makarenko seeking to declare the decision unlawful and annul it, and to compel certain actions (qualification assessment for compliance with the position held).  

 

By rulings of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court:

• In Cases No. 990/143/25 – claim filed by V.F. Popov; No. 990/231/25 – claim filed by D.Y. Shvets; No. 990/152/25 – claim filed by R.I. Kuzan; No. 990/294/25 – claim filed by D.L. Cherkez, the position of the Commission was upheld, in particular in cases where the Commission had filed appeals: such appeals were granted, the judgments of the courts of first instance were set aside, new judgments were rendered dismissing the claims, and the claimants’ appeals were dismissed (competition to the courts of appeal: qualification exam, practical assignment);
• In Cases No. 990/482/25 – claim filed by A.O. Lymar; No. 990/465/25 – claim filed by O.O. Svizha, the position of the Commission was upheld, in particular in cases where the Commission had filed appeals: such appeals were granted, the judgments of the courts of first instance were set aside, new judgments were rendered dismissing the claims, and the claimants’ appeals were dismissed (selection procedure: qualification exam, cognitive abilities test);
• In Case No. 990/550/25 – claim filed by V.V. Humeniuk, the claimant’s appeal against the judgment of the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court dated February 25, 2026 (whereby the claim was dismissed) was dismissed (HACC: admission);
• In Case No. 990/314/25 – claim filed by V.V. Zinchenko, the claimant’s appeal against the judgment of the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court dated December 15, 2025 (whereby the claim was dismissed) was dismissed (selection procedure: admission).

Document flow

 Documents were processed:

• 3 870 – incoming documents;
• 2 885 – outgoing documents.

3 885 inquiries and appeals were reviewed:

• 6 lawyer’s requests;
• 72 requests for information;
• 69 appeals;
• 3 738 other inquiries.

 

Assistance in the implementation of judicial career procedures will be gladly provided, and proposals for improving Commission’s work will be considered!

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