The Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the HCJ on the dismissal of Vsevolod Kniaziev from the position of a Supreme Court judge.
On December 12, 2024, the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the HCJ dated July 18, 2024, on the disciplinary action against Vsevolod Kniaziev and his dismissal from the position of a judge of the Supreme Court.
This decision was the final stage of the disciplinary proceedings against Kniaziev, which began on April 15, 2024, at the request of the National Agency for Corruption Prevention (NACP). This happened after the former Supreme Court Chief was found guilty in the case of underpaying for an apartment.
In 2017, Kniaziev rented an apartment in the Pechersk district of Kyiv at a reduced price of UAH 1,000 per month. The difference between the market value of the rent and the actual amount was recognized as an unlawful gift, in violation of the Law of Ukraine on Prevention of Corruption.
On December 26, 2023, the Pecherskyi District Court of Kyiv fined Kniaziev UAH 2,550 and ordered the confiscation of the unlawful gift of UAH 906,600. Later, the Kyiv Court of Appeal upheld this decision. We wrote more about this case here.
After the appellate hearing, the NACP appealed to the High Council of Justice; it opened a disciplinary case, which ended with Kniaziev's dismissal from office. Kniaziev himself did not agree with this decision and appealed it to the Supreme Court. Today, the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court did put an end to the case of bringing Kniaziev to disciplinary liability.
The case of apartment rental at a reduced price is not the main one for Kniaziev. Currently, the Supreme Court of Ukraine continues hearing the case of a bribe of USD 2.7 million to the former head of the Supreme Court.