Boryspil Court's Ruling
The Boryspil City District Court in the Kyiv region has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a mother who sought to have her son declared as having forfeited his right to use a room in a dormitory. The mother argued he lost this right due to his residence in the Russian Federation for over eight years. The court found the evidence she provided to be insufficient to support her claim.
In case No. 359/3304/25, the court heard that the plaintiff is the occupant of a dormitory room in Boryspil. The right to this living space was granted to a family of four based on a warrant issued by the city council's executive committee in 2008. The plaintiff's son, born in 1986, was listed among the family members in this warrant.
The plaintiff submitted an inspection report of living conditions, stating that she is the sole actual occupant of the room. However, referencing Article 41 of the Constitution of Ukraine, Article 1 of the First Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights, and relevant articles of the Ukrainian Civil Code, the court concluded she failed to provide adequate proof. This proof should have included statements from neighbors or other witnesses, evidence of the absence of the defendant's personal belongings, and confirmation of the duration of his absence from objective sources.
Court's Conclusions
The court also cited the practice of the European Court of Human Rights, specifically the 2010 case of Kryvitska and Kryvitskyy v. Ukraine. Crucially, under Article 81 of the Ukrainian Civil Procedural Code, the burden of proof rests with the plaintiff. To have a person declared as having lost the right to use a dwelling, it is necessary to establish:
- The person's absence for over one year;
- The absence is without valid reason;
- Conscious behavior indicating a loss of interest in the dwelling.
Consequently, the mother's lawsuit was dismissed, as the court found insufficient grounds to grant her demands. This case highlights the complex legal challenges that can arise within families separated by international borders, particularly following Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and the ongoing war. It underscores the high evidentiary standards required in Ukrainian courts for matters concerning property rights, even in disputes between relatives.