Yanukovych’s lawyer demands that Ukraine compensate court costs

British lawyer Joe Hage, who represents the interests of Viktor Yanukovych in the ECJ, demands that Ukraine partially compensate his expenses.

The lawyer said this to reporters, the Yevropeiska Pravda (European Truth) Ukrainian media outlet reports.

The problem has arisen due to inconsistent legal position of the Ukrainian government in the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg: last year Kyiv had entered the action “Yanukovych v Council”, but later changed its mind and ceased any involvement in the process.

Yanukovych’s lawyer claims that he managed to appeal against the actions of Ukraine within two months between Ukraine’s entering and leaving the litigation.

The interim decision of the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg confirms that if the lawyers of Yanukovych challenge the actions of Ukraine and the documents on payment of legal services by Yanukovych are available, Ukraine will have to compensate the ex-president for these expenses from the state budget.

As of now, the decisions on Ukraine’s entering and its withdrawal from the process over the lawsuit against ex-President Viktor Yanukovych and his older son Oleksandr were published. The documents dated back to March this year but were published only late September or early October. At the same time, the sources of the Yevropeiska Pravda claim that Ukraine’s Justice Ministry entered other trials against former officials.

As reported, ex-president of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych appealed to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg as he believes that Ukraine had violated such his rights as the right to fair trial, the right not to be discriminated against because of his political status and opinions and so on.

July 28, Prosecutor General of Ukraine Viktor Shokin stated that the procedure for conviction of Yanukovych in absentia had been launched. July 27, the Kyiv Court recognized the validity of arguments and evidence provided by the General Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine and started the trial in absentia. Yanukovych’s defense later appealed this trial procedure. August 11, the Kyiv Court of Appeal in dismissed the appeal.

According to the head of the Special Investigations Unit of the Prosecutor General’s Office Serhiy Horbatiuk, five criminal proceedings were initiated against Yanukovych on charges of involvement in the crimes committed during Maidan protest (making law enforcement officers exceed their authority resulting in grave consequences, including murders; setting up a criminal organization; appropriation of Sukholuchchia forest and buildings and land plots in Mezhyhirya; embezzlement of budget funds to create special telecommunication line for public authorities).