Supreme Court opens case on UOC appeal against DESS orders

Cassation Administrative Court in the Supreme Court. Photo: lexinform.com.ua

On October 2, 2025, the Supreme Court of Ukraine opened appellate proceedings on the complaint of the Kyiv Metropolis of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) against the ruling of the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal. The court ordered the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) to publish a notice about the opening of the case, which appeared on the official website dess.gov.ua on October 6.

It will be recalled that the DESS filed a lawsuit seeking to terminate the activities of the Kyiv Metropolis of the UOC and transfer its property, funds, and assets (excluding sacred items) to state ownership.

This case has become one of the most high-profile in recent times, as the Kyiv Metropolis is the main administrative center of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

Earlier, the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal had denied the UOC’s request for interim measures that would have temporarily suspended the actions of the DESS – in particular, the issuance of binding orders to religious organizations within the UOC’s structure.

The Kyiv Metropolis disagreed with this decision and filed an appeal with the Supreme Court, seeking to restore its rights and guarantee a fair judicial process.

The Supreme Court has now opened appellate proceedings, obliging the DESS to publish the notice of the case’s opening and granting ten days to submit a response to the appeal.

This means that the case now moves to consideration by the highest judicial authority in Ukraine.

Previously, detailed information was published regarding the UOC Metropolis’s lawsuit against the DESS.

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