ADER HABER secured supreme court decision in a uah 4.3 billion recovery dispute for a leading wholesale energy supplier in Ukraine

The litigation practice team of ADER HABER won in the Supreme Court in a dispute over the recovery of more than UAH 4.3 billion in favor of a company supplying electricity and natural gas (case No. 910/3279/25).

The substance of the case:

The client of ADER HABER supplied natural gas to the counterparty under a contract and additional agreements. The buyer made partial payments over the years. However, the multi-billion obligations were not fully performed.

The court of first instance fully granted the Client’s claim. The Northern Commercial Court of Appeal upheld the decision, adjusting certain components of the accruals. Seeking to overturn the court decisions adopted by the lower instances in favor of our Client, the defendant filed a cassation appeal to the Supreme Court.

The role of ADER HABER Law Firm:

The defendant’s cassation appeal was built on a broad range of procedural arguments: challenging the admissibility of electronic documents, requesting the appointment of a forensic economic expert examination, numerous motions to request evidence, and, as a final argument, an attempt to question the claimant’s right to recover funds through unfounded allegations of affiliation with an aggressor state.

The ADER HABER litigation team refuted all of the defendant’s arguments. As a result, the appellate court ruling was left unchanged and in force.

Why this case is more complex than it appears at first glance:

Obtaining a final resolution of the dispute and confirming the legality of recovery at the Supreme Court is important. But this is only part of the task. The main issue is achieving actual enforcement of the court decision and recovery of funds from the defendant, who is affiliated with a person subject to sanctions imposed by a Decree of the President of Ukraine.

It is also of fundamental importance for the Client that the monetary claims against the debtor are pledged as security for the Client’s bank loan. Therefore, actual recovery determines the company’s ability to fulfil its own obligations to its creditor.

The ADER HABER team initiated bankruptcy proceedings against the debtor with the aim of actual recovery of funds, including through joint and subsidiary liability of beneficial owners and managers. In response, the defendant engaged in large-scale procedural resistance and is currently filing numerous lawsuits, challenging the Client’s actions within the already opened bankruptcy proceedings, and accumulating creditor claims through other related and friendly creditors.

Significance of the case:

The Supreme Court clearly indicated the limits of procedural manipulation and that such tactics will not help avoid liability:
– technical objections regarding the form of evidence cannot replace a substantive counter-calculation;
– arguments not raised in due time will not delay the final resolution of the dispute in cassation;
– and the actual actions of participants in contractual relations are the best evidence confirming the real circumstances of the case.

The case is handled by a dedicated project team under the direct supervision of Managing Partner of ADER HABER Law Firm, Yuriy Petrenko. The litigation run by Partner Andrii Hvozdetskyi and Counsel Artem Vitsenko.