11922/24;15395/24;15722/24;17145/24;17885/24;18648/24;19000/24;20161/24;25079/24;30211/24;30417/24;33581/24;35842/24

FIFTH SECTION CASE OF SHTEFAN AND OTHERS v. UKRAINE (Applications nos. 11922/24 and 12 others – see appended list)             JUDGMENT   STRASBOURG 13 November 2025     This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision. In the case of Shtefan and Others v. Ukraine, The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:  Andreas Zünd, President,  Gilberto Felici,  Diana Sârcu, judges, and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar, Having deliberated in private on 16 October 2025, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date: PROCEDURE 1.  The case originated in applications against Ukraine lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table. 2.  The Ukrainian Government (“the Government”) were given notice of the applications. THE FACTS 3.  The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table. 4.  The applicants complained of the excessive length of criminal proceedings and of the lack of any effective remedy in domestic law. THE LAW        JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS 5.  Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.       THE LOCUS STANDI OF MR Yevgen Ivanovych SUCHKOV 6.  As concerns the complaints raised by the applicant in application no. 25079/24, the Court notes that the applicant died on 29 March 2025, while the case was pending before the Court. The applicant’s daughter, Ms Tetyana Yevgenivna Suchkova, has requested to pursue the application on her father’s behalf. As the request is in line with its case-law, the Court sees no reason to refuse it (see, among other authorities, Benyaminson v. Ukraine, no. 31585/02, § 83, 26 July 2007; Petr Korolev v. Russia, no. 38112/04, §§ 43-45, 21 October 2010; Sergey Denisov and Others v. Russia, nos. 1985/05 and 4 others, §§ 73-75, 19 April 2016; and Horváthová v. Slovakia, no. 74456/01, §§ 25-27, 17 May 2005). However, reference will still be made to the applicant throughout the present text.     ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE  6 § 1 AND ARTICLE 13 OF THE CONVENTION 7.  The applicants complained that the length of the criminal proceedings in question had been incompatible with the “reasonable time” requirement and that they had no effective remedy in this connection. They relied on Article 6 § 1 and Article 13 of the Convention. 8.  The Court reiterates that the reasonableness of the length of proceedings must be assessed in the light of the circumstances of the case and with reference to the following criteria: the complexity of the case, the conduct of the applicants and the relevant authorities and what was at stake for the applicants in the dispute (see, among many other authorities, Pélissier and Sassi v. France [GC], no. 25444/94, § 67, ECHR 1999‑II, and Frydlender v. France [GC], no. 30979/96, § 43, ECHR 2000‑VII). 9.  In the leading case of Nechay v. Ukraine (no. 15360/10, 1 July 2021) the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case. 10.  Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of justifying the overall length of the proceedings at the national level. Having regard to its case-law on the subject, the Court considers that in the instant case the length of the proceedings was excessive and failed to meet the “reasonable time” requirement. 11.  The Court further notes that the applicants did not have at their disposal an effective remedy in respect of these complaints. 12.  These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 6 § 1 and of Article 13 of the Convention.    APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION 13.  Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case‑law (see, in particular, Bevz v. Ukraine, no. 7307/05, § 52, 18 June 2009), the Court finds it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table. FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,      Decides to join the applications;      Decides that Ms Suchkova, the daughter of the applicant in application no. 25079/24, has locus standi in the proceedings;      Declares the applications admissible;      Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 6 § 1 and Article 13 of the Convention concerning the excessive length of criminal proceedings;      Holds  that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;   that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points. Done in English, and notified in writing on 13 November 2025, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.  Viktoriya Maradudina Andreas Zünd  Acting Deputy Registrar President       APPENDIX List of applications raising complaints under Article 6 § 1 and Article 13 of the Convention (excessive length of criminal proceedings and lack of any effective remedy in domestic law) No. Application no. Date of introduction Applicant’s name Year of birth   Representative’s name and location Start of proceedings End of proceedings Total length Levels of jurisdiction Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage per applicant (in euros)[1]     11922/24 01/04/2024 Vladyslav Oleksandrovych SHTEFAN   Doroga-Vorobyeva Alisa Yuriyivna Kyiv 07/06/2016   pending   More than 9 years and 3 months and 16 days 1 level of jurisdiction 3,600     15395/24 07/05/2024 Gennadiy Yevstafyevych DANKO   Kazarnovskyy Oleksandr Lvovych Odesa 30/03/2009   pending   More than 16 years and 5 months and 24 days 1 level of jurisdiction 7,800     15722/24 07/05/2024 Vitaliy Grygorovych BODACHEVSKYY   Kazarnovskyy Oleksandr Lvovych Odesa 30/03/2009   pending   More than 16 years and 5 months and 24 day 1 level of jurisdiction 7,800     17145/24 02/05/2024 Zaza Volodymyrovych MOSESHVILI   Pustyntsev Andriy Vitaliyovych Dnipro 24/02/2020   pending   More than 5 years and 7 months 2 levels of jurisdiction 1,500     17885/24 06/06/2024 Yaroslav Mykhaylovych STEPANCHAK   Matus Taras Anatoliyovych Ternopil   Samulyak Mykhaylo Yuriyovych Ternopil 23/03/2018   06/02/2024   5 years and 10 months and 15 days 3 levels of jurisdiction       18648/24 04/06/2024 Sergiy Mykolayovych BUSEL       04/09/2019   pending   More than 6 years and 19 days 2 levels of jurisdiction 1,500     19000/24 06/06/2024 Andriy Petrovych KYRYCHUK   Yelov Vitaliy Andriyovych Lutsk 23/05/2017   07/02/2024   6 years and 8 months and 16 days 3 levels of jurisdiction     20161/24 25/06/2024 Viktoriya Stanislavivna KALUGA   Samarets Alina Mykolayivna Kyiv 05/09/2014   pending   More than 11 years and 18 days 2 levels of jurisdiction   3,600     25079/24 17/08/2024 Yevgen Ivanovych SUCHKOV Died in 2025   Suchkova Tetyana Yevgenivna Kyiv 26/02/2014   29/04/2024   10 years and 2 months and 4 days 1 level of jurisdiction   4,200   30211/24 28/09/2024 Sergiy Oleksiyovych GONCHAROV   Shadrin Oleksandr Sergiyovych Irpin 02/02/2017   28/05/2024   7 years and 3 months and 27 days 3 level of jurisdiction     30417/24 30/09/2024 Lyudmyla Sergiyivna BURLAKOVA   Poznyak Oleksandr Mykolayovych Kyiv 07/09/2019   pending   More than 6 years and 16 days 1 level of jurisdiction   1,800   33581/24 31/10/2024 Sergiy Ivanovych KRASNYANSKYY   Sobyna Pavlo Mykolayovych Okhtyrka 16/03/2018   pending   More than 7 years and 6 months and 7 days 1 level of jurisdiction 3,000   35842/24 07/11/2024 Svitlana Oleksandrivna GORBUSHKO   Sobyna Pavlo Mykolayovych Okhtyrka 24/11/2008 28/05/2015 20/01/2017   29/12/2014 05/03/2016 pending   More than 15 years and 6 months and 16 days 2 levels of jurisdiction   6,600   [1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.