The Ethics Council has disqualified Kucheryavenko from the competition for the High Council of Justice
This is according to a post by lawyer Rostyslav Kravets.
What the Ethics Council decided
The Ethics Council adopted its decision regarding candidates for membership of the High Council of Justice on 14 July. Kucheryavenko was standing for a seat on the High Council of Justice under the quota allocated to the congress of representatives of higher education law schools and academic institutions.
Following the vetting process, he will not be able to continue participating in this selection process. The Ethics Council does not appoint members of the High Council of Justice, but vets candidates to ensure they meet the requirements of professional ethics and integrity. Candidates who fail this vetting are excluded from the selection process.
Along with Kucheryavenko, four other candidates received negative decisions: Pavlo Hultay, Yaroslav Melnyk, Raisa Minchenko and Nataliia Savinova.
According to a report cited by UNIAN, there is no detailed justification for the decision regarding each of them. Therefore, the mere statement that they did not meet the criteria does not provide grounds for asserting that all candidates were eliminated for the same reasons.
What questions were put to Kucheryavenko
According to lawyer Rostyslav Kravets, during the interview, members of the Ethics Council questioned Kucheryavenko about four unfinished flats and the source of the funds spent on the property.
Kravets claims that the candidate explained the expenditure as a loan from an acquaintance. According to the lawyer, the money was transferred in instalments, and individual sums did not reach the threshold above which they had to be declared.
However, this is a summary of the interview and Kravets’ own assessment. The report does not contain a decision by the Ethics Council with a detailed description of the established facts; therefore, it is not yet correct to cite the flats or the loan as the official reason for the rejection.
According to his lawyer, Kucheryavenko was also asked whether he had received instructions regarding the selection of the winner of the competition for the post of NABU director. The candidate denied this.
What role did Kucheryavenko play in the NABU competition?
Mykola Kucheryavenko chaired the selection committee which, in 2022–2023, conducted the selection process for candidates for the post of director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau.
However, the committee itself did not appoint the NABU director. It conducted the competition and shortlisted the finalists, after which the final decision was taken by the Cabinet of Ministers. On 6 March 2023, the government appointed Semen Kryvonos as director of the bureau.
The Ethics Council’s decision regarding Kucheryavenko does not overturn the results of that competition and does not imply an automatic review of Kryvonos’s appointment. This would require separate legal grounds and a procedure provided for by law.
Kravets’ claims regarding possible interference in the competition remain, for the time being, mere speculation. The article in question contains no court ruling or official investigation report that would confirm interference in the selection of the NABU director.
What does withdrawal from the competition mean?
The High Council of Justice makes decisions on the appointment, dismissal and disciplinary liability of judges, and also performs other functions within the judicial governance system.
It comprises 21 members. Representatives of law universities and academic institutions elect two members of the High Council of Justice; however, before the vote, candidates must undergo vetting by the Ethics Council.
Following a negative decision, Kucheryavenko cannot be elected to the High Council of Justice as part of the current competition. At the same time, this decision relates solely to his candidacy for the judicial governance body and does not in itself constitute a criminal or administrative offence.
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