How to file an appeal? Advised by a lawyer in Kyiv, Fedkov

To which court should an appeal be filed?

The Constitution of Ukraine guarantees and ensures everyone the right to an appeal review of a case. Such a right is granted by the procedural codes of Ukraine to the participants in the case and to persons who did not participate in the case, if the court decided the issue of their rights, interests and (or) obligations. The decision of the court of first instance may be appealed in whole or in part.

To which court is the appeal filed?

The system of courts in Ukraine is built on the principles of territoriality and jurisdiction. In order to determine to which court an appeal is filed, one should familiarize oneself with the system of the judiciary established by the Law of Ukraine “On the judiciary and the status of judges”. Thus, the profile law establishes that appeals are considered by the courts of appeal, the current courts of appeal.

Courts of appeal for civil and criminal cases, as well as cases of administrative offenses are courts of appeal formed in appellate districts.

Appellate courts for consideration of economic cases, appellate courts for consideration of administrative cases are the appellate economic courts and appellate administrative courts, which are formed in the respective appellate districts.

The judicial districts of general and specialized courts do not coincide.

As of today, the appellate districts of general courts have not been created, therefore, the appellate courts in the respective appellate districts are, respectively, the Kiev Court of Appeal, the Court of Appeal of the city of Sevastopol, the Court of Appeal of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, and the appellate courts of the regions.

To which court is an appeal filed in a civil suit?

To which court an appeal is filed in a civil procedure should be decided based on the administrative unit in which the local general court that issued the appealed decision was located.

The jurisdiction of economic courts as courts of appeal is special and corresponds to the administrative-territorial structure of Ukraine. As of today, there are seven economic courts of appeal in our state: Eastern, Central, Southern, Southwestern, Northern, Northwestern, Western.

To which court is an appeal filed in a business proceeding?

To which court an appeal is filed in the economic process should be decided based on which local economic court made the appealed decision, and which appellate district the court that made the corresponding decision belongs to. More information on the boundaries of each judicial district can be found on the website of the respective court of appeal.

The administrative court of appeal is the administrative court of appeal within whose territorial jurisdiction is the local administrative court (local general court as administrative court or district administrative court) that issued the decision. As of today, there are eight administrative courts of appeal in our state, named according to the numbers – First, Second and so on.

To which court is an appeal filed in an administrative proceeding?

To which court an appeal is filed in an administrative proceeding should be decided on the basis of which local general court as an administrative court or a district administrative court adopted the appealed decision, which appellate district the court that made the corresponding decision belongs to. More information on the boundaries of each judicial district can be found on the website of the respective court of appeal.

The criminal process has its own peculiarities: court decisions taken by the court of first instance are appealed through the court that made the decision, and an appeal against the determination of the investigator or the court is filed directly with the court of appeal.

If the decision is rendered by the Court of Appeal as a court of first instance, then the Supreme Court will be the appellate instance for filing a complaint.

Deadline for an appeal

What is the time limit for filing an appeal?

How long does it take to file an appeal against a court decision?

The deadline for filing an appeal depends on the procedural code, according to which the decision of the court of first instance was made. The term for an appeal is different and depends on the procedural code on the basis of which it is carried out, and on the type of court decision that is being challenged (determination, decision, sentence).

Deadline for filing an appeal in the Civil Code

What is the deadline for filing an appeal in the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine? Article 354 of the said code establishes a period of thirty days for a court decision and fifteen days for a court ruling from the date of its (her) announcement.

If only the introductory and operative parts of the court decision were announced at the court session, or in the case of consideration of the case (resolution of the issue) without notifying (summoning) the participants in the case, the specified period shall be calculated from the date of drawing up the full court decision.

Deadline for filing an appeal in business proceedings

The term for filing an appeal in the economic process is determined by the Economic Procedural Code of Ukraine and for a court decision it is twenty days, and for a court decision – ten days.

Deadline for appealing to the Administrative Court of Appeal

The term for filing an appeal to the administrative court of appeal is determined by Article 295 of the Code of Administrative Procedure of Ukraine. So, for the decision of the court of first instance, it is thirty days, and for the determination – fifteen.

An appeal in criminal proceedings is filed within thirty days from the date of pronouncement of the verdict or ruling on the application or refusal to apply coercive measures of a medical or educational nature, within five days on the ruling of the investigating judge and on the ruling of the court on choosing a measure of restraint in the form of detention , on changing another measure of restraint to a measure of restraint in the form of detention or on the extension of the period of detention, decided during the trial in the court of first instance, and within seven days on other court rulings.

The term of appeal may be renewed if it is missed for good reasons. The legislation does not define a specific list of reasons that are valid and are the basis for the renewal of the missed procedural period. The Court, when ascertaining the reasons for missing the deadline, shall determine whether such a deadline is significant and whether the renewal of such a deadline would interfere with the principle of legal certainty, taking into account the balance of public and private interests.

Requirements of procedural codes for filing an appeal

The appeal is submitted to the court in writing and signed by the complainant or his representative and has several alternative ways of filing with the court.

How to file an appeal with the court?

How to file an appeal with the court, the complainant decides at his own discretion, taking into account the method of communication that is most convenient for him. Thus, an appeal and the documents attached to it can be filed directly with the court through the court office, sent by mail with a description of the attachment, or using the Unified Judicial Information and Telecommunication System (“Electronic Court”), after registering an electronic office in it.

The text of the appeal must contain the following information:

• the name of the court to which the complaint is filed;

• full name for legal entities or last name, first name and patronymic for individuals of the person filing the appeal, his location or place of residence or stay, postal code, identification code of the legal entity, registration number of the taxpayer’s account card, if any, or number and series of the passport for individuals – citizens of Ukraine, numbers of means of communication and e-mail, official e-mail address, if any;

• full name or surname, name and patronymic of other participants in the case, their location or place of residence or stay;

• the contested decisions or ruling;

• what is the illegality and (or) groundlessness of the decision or determination (incomplete establishment of circumstances relevant to the case, and (or) incorrect establishment of circumstances relevant to the case, due to an unreasonable refusal to accept evidence, their incorrect examination or assessment), failure to provide evidence for good reasons and (or) incorrect determination in accordance with the circumstances of legal relations established by the court, etc.);

• new circumstances to be established, evidence to be examined or evaluated, substantiation of the validity of the reasons for not presenting evidence to the court of first instance, objections to the evidence used by the court of first instance;

• petition of the person who filed the complaint;

• date of receipt of a copy of the appealed court decision of the court of first instance;

• list of documents and other attached materials.

Evidence of payment of the court fee or documents confirming the grounds for exemption from payment of the court fee in accordance with the law should be added to the statement of claim; a document certifying the authority of the representative; evidence of sending a copy of the complaint to the other party in the case or a copy of the complaint and added written materials in accordance with the number of participants in the case in criminal and civil proceedings; evidence confirming the date of receipt of a copy of the appealed court decision of the first instance, if available.

For filing an appeal with a court, a court fee is paid in the amount of 150 percent of the rate payable when filing a statement of claim, other statement and complaint, or one subsistence minimum for able-bodied persons for an appeal against a court ruling.

It should be borne in mind that without practical skills, independently drafting, processing and filing an appeal can be a difficult task. To date, it is not uncommon for an appeal to be left without movement or to be returned to the complainant, which is caused by shortcomings and errors that were made in its preparation and execution. Therefore, professional assistance in the preparation and execution of an appeal should not be ignored.

How to file an appeal?