Justice in the East of Ukraine During the Ongoing Armed Conflict

This article reviews the consequences of the invasion by military elements of the Russian Federation and its adjuncts, including pro-Russian separatist armed groups,¹ into Ukraine’s eastern regions or oblasts following Russia’s annexation of the Crimea. The review focuses on the adverse impact and ongoing trespass on Ukraine’s (i) criminal and, to a lesser extent, civil and administrative justice systems; (ii) police, prosecutorial and court institutions; (iii) access to justice by the Ukrainian citizens residing in the conflict zones of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, and (iv) the long-term implications of restoring Ukraine’s justice framework to the conflict areas once the invading forces are routed. The authors summarize the efforts of the invasive forces to undermine the rule of law by establishing their own presumptive rogue constructs for processing matters ordinarily adjudicated by sovereign courts. These rogue constructs staffed by persons of unquestioning political loyalty to the Russian Federation and operating pursuant to substantive law and procedure based on Russian legal models.

Keywords: justice in Ukraine’s eastern oblasts