The Constitutional Court of Ukraine has declared unconstitutional certain provisions of the Law of Ukraine On the Prosecutor’s Office, which provide the prosecutor with the opportunity to represent the interests of the state in court “in connection with the failure or improper protection of these interests by a state authority, local government or other subject of government authority.”
The Constitutional Court made such a decision on December 3 in the case of a constitutional complaint by Reinir Business Group LLC, the court’s press service told Interfax-Ukraine, noting that the specified norms will cease to be valid from January 1, 2027.
It is reported that on December 3, 2025, the Second Senate of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine at a plenary session adopted a decision in the case on the constitutional complaint of Reiner Business Group LLC, which filed a motion to verify the compliance of Article 1311 of the Constitution of Ukraine with the provisions of paragraph one of part three, paragraphs one, two, and three of part four of Article 23 of Law of Ukraine On the Prosecutor’s Office No. 1697–VII dated October 14, 2014, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the Law).
The court’s notice explained which norms the motion concerned. Thus, according to Article 23 of the Law, “the prosecutor shall represent in court the legitimate interests of the state in the event of a violation or threat of violation of the interests of the state, if the protection of these interests is not carried out or is carried out improperly by a state authority, local government body or other subject of power, to whose competence the relevant powers are attributed, as well as in the absence of such a body” (paragraph one of part three).
According to Part Four of Article 23 of the Law, “the existence of grounds for representation must be substantiated by the prosecutor in court. The prosecutor represents the interests of a citizen or the state in court only after the court confirms the grounds for representation. The prosecutor is obliged to notify the citizen and his legal representative or the relevant subject of authority about this in advance, before applying to the court. If the court confirms the existence of grounds for representation, the prosecutor uses the procedural powers of the relevant party to the proceedings. The existence of grounds for representation may be contested by the citizen or his legal representative or the subject of authority” (paragraphs one, two, three).
“The Constitutional Court of Ukraine recognized paragraphs one, two, and three of part four of Article 23 of the Law as being in accordance with the Constitution of Ukraine. At the same time, the Court recognized as unconstitutional certain provisions of paragraph one of part three of Article 23 of the Law in that they provide the prosecutor with the opportunity to represent the interests of the state in court in connection with the failure or improper exercise of the protection of these interests by a state authority, local government body, or other subject of power, to whose competence the relevant powers are attributed,” the press service said.
It is also reported that the court determined the terms of loss of validity of certain provisions of paragraph one of part three of Article 23 of the Law, which were recognized as unconstitutional. Thus, the decision established that they lose their validity from January 1, 2027.
The court also ruled that the decision does not apply to legal relations regarding the representation of the interests of the state by a prosecutor in court that arose during the validity of certain provisions of Part Three of Article 23 of the Law, which were recognized as unconstitutional, and continue to exist after their invalidation. The decision and its summary will be published on the official website of the Court on December 4, 2025.
