Here is a detailed analysis of the court decision, prepared for you:
1. The subject of the dispute is the right of family members of a military serviceman who died as a result of a general illness (related to the defense of the Fatherland) to receive a one-time financial assistance in the amount of UAH 15,000,000, as provided for by Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution No. 168.
2. In this case, the Court departed from the previous position of the Supreme Court set forth in cases No. 600/548/23-a and No. 380/9868/23, where an expansive interpretation of the grounds for the payment of assistance was previously permitted. The Supreme Court, sitting as a judicial chamber, emphasized that the provisions of clause 2 of Resolution No. 168 cannot be applied autonomously and do not cover all cases of the death of a military serviceman during martial law. The Court clarified that the right to the UAH 15 million payment arises only in the event of death or demise as a result of a wound, concussion, trauma, or mutilation sustained during the defense of the Fatherland. The conclusion of the military medical commission regarding the connection of a “general illness” to the defense of the Fatherland is not, in itself, sufficient grounds for the payment of assistance in the increased amount. In this case, it was established that the military serviceman died of cardiovascular failure without having sustained combat injuries. Therefore, the Court concluded that in such a case, social protection must be provided on general grounds as stipulated by Law No. 2011-XII and Procedure No. 975, and not under the “combat” provision of Resolution No. 168.
3. The Supreme Court dismissed the plaintiff’s cassation appeal and upheld the decision of the appellate court, which had denied the payment of UAH 15,000,000.
