On August 6, 2024, the High Council of Justice (HCJ) made a final decision and dismissed Vsevolod Knyazev, a judge of the Administrative Court of Cassation within the Supreme Court, for committing a significant disciplinary offense documented by the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP).
On July 18, 2024, the HCJ upheld the decision of the First Disciplinary Chamber of the HCJ of June 17 to discipline former Supreme Court Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniazev in the form of a motion to dismiss him from the position of a judge. However, for the final dismissal of Knyazev from the position of a HCJ judge, this decision must be approved by the plenary.
Prior to that, the official was temporarily suspended from the administration of justice based on the decision of the First Disciplinary Chamber of the High Council of Justice.
The decision to bring the judge to disciplinary responsibility and impose a disciplinary sanction in the form of a motion for dismissal was made following consideration of the disciplinary case opened on April 15, 2024, at the request of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP).
On December 13, 2023, NACP Head filed a report against the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on an administrative offense under Part 1 of Article 172-5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses.
In violation of the prohibition provided for in Part 2 of Article 23 of the Law of Ukraine “On Prevention of Corruption”, Vsevolod Kniazev received a gift in the form of a lease of an apartment in the Pechersk district (“Lypky”) of Kyiv with an area of 133 square meters at a price significantly lower than the minimum market value of rental housing.
Based on a real estate lease agreement concluded at the end of 2017, the judge rented the apartment for a monthly fee of UAH 1 thousand. It was the difference in the actual and minimum market rent that constituted this illegal gift.
On December 26, 2023, the Pecherskyi District Court of Kyiv imposed an administrative penalty on Vsevolod Kniazev in the form of a fine of UAH 2,550 and confiscation of the gift in the amount of UAH 906,600.
On March 11, 2024, the Kyiv Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against the decision of the Pechersk District Court, which found him guilty of violating the statutory restrictions on receiving gifts. Following the appeal, NACP filed a complaint with the High Council of Justice.
Since Knyazev was found guilty of committing a corruption-related offense, his information was entered into the Unified State Register of Persons Who Committed Corruption or Corruption-Related Offenses.
