According to the case materials, plaintiff Alexander Lustich has lived in his own apartment in Donetsk since 2007. With the beginning of the Russian occupation in 2014, basic communications disappeared in the city – water, electricity, gas, and access to communications and medical services was limited. The article states that living conditions in Donetsk have become more difficult and dangerous for residents.
In 2018, Lustich moved to Kyiv and received the status of an internally displaced person (IDP). The publication notes that his apartment remained in territory not controlled by Ukraine, as a result of which he was actually deprived of ownership rights. In addition, the man did not have the opportunity to meet his relatives who remained in the occupied territories.
The case file notes that in 2022, during the active phase of the invasion of the Kyiv region, Lustich found himself in a combat zone. Constant air raids, shelling and living in bomb shelters led to a deterioration in his health, memory problems and emotional exhaustion.
The publication notes that the main issue in the case was overcoming Russia's judicial immunity.
“Judge Zh.I. Kordyukova, relying on the practice of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of Ukraine dated May 12, 2022, noted that by committing armed aggression, Russia went beyond the limits of its sovereign rights and violated the UN Charter. Therefore, it cannot invoke immunity to avoid liability.”
Antikor reports that when determining the amount of compensation, the court was guided by the practice of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular, the 1998 case “Luisida v. the Republic of Turkey,” where compensation was also awarded through the occupation of property.
The publication adds that the Goloseevsky court satisfied the claim in full and decided to pay Lustich moral damages in the amount of 1,652,045 UAH 50 kopecks, which is equivalent to €35 thousand at the NBU exchange rate at the time of filing the claim.
