Published on 23 February 2026
 
FIFTH SECTION
Application no. 42981/19
Natalya Anatoliyivna YEVTUSHENKO
against Ukraine
lodged on 5 August 2019
communicated on 5 February 2026
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
The application concerns an alleged breach of the principle of equality of arms in civil proceedings initiated by the applicant against a commercial bank and a co-owner of her apartment over the invalidation of a mortgage agreement.
On 1 November 2016 the Appeal Court of the Kharkiv Region upheld the decision of a first-instance court by which it had declared the above mortgage agreement invalid.
On 16 January 2019, following the bank’s appeal on points of law, the Supreme Court quashed the above decisions and dismissed the applicant’s claim, finding that it had been lodged outside the statutory limitation period. According to the applicant, she learnt of the Supreme Court’s ruling only in June 2019.
Relying on Article 6 of the Convention, the applicant complains that she was denied a fair hearing because she was not notified of the proceedings before the Supreme Court and was not served with a copy of the bank’s appeal on points of law.
 
 
 
 
QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES
Did the applicant have a fair hearing in the determination of her civil rights and obligations, in accordance with Article 6 § 1 of the Convention? In particular, was the principle of equality of arms respected in the proceedings before the Supreme Court in the applicant’s case (see Lazarenko and Others v. Ukraine, nos. 70329/12 and 5 others, §§ 36-37, 27 June 2017; Viktor Nazarenko v. Ukraine, no. 18656/13, § 36, 3 October 2017; Tverdokhlebova v. Ukraine, no. 15830/16, § 23, 16 January 2025; and, for illustrative purposes, compare with Voytsekhovskyy v. Ukraine (dec.) [Committee], no. 41881/18, §§ 9-12, 26 January 2023)?
 
The parties are requested to submit copies of all documents related to the notification of the applicant regarding the proceedings before the Supreme Court.