1. The subject of the dispute is the legality of the order of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine (Minjust) regarding the cancellation of registration actions concerning changes in information about the ultimate beneficial owners of legal entities in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, Individual Entrepreneurs, and Public Associations (USR).
2. The court of cassation noted that the courts of previous instances erroneously closed the proceedings in the case, considering the dispute to be private law, since the plaintiffs are challenging the Minjust order on procedural grounds, namely, violation of their right to participate in the review of the complaint of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the SBU’s lack of authority to file a complaint at the time of its submission, and violation of the deadlines for filing the complaint. The court emphasized that it is necessary to distinguish between disputes regarding the legality of Minjust decisions made as a result of reviewing complaints against registration actions, when the subject of the dispute is procedural issues, which fall under administrative jurisdiction, and disputes regarding the legality of the registration actions of state registrars themselves, when the subject of the dispute is the lawfulness of making changes to the USR regarding corporate rights, which may fall under economic jurisdiction. The court also noted that the verification of compliance with the principles of due administrative procedure is carried out by the administrative court and is an integral part of the control over the legality of an individual administrative act. The court departed from previous practice, noting that in similar disputes, where the Minjust decision is challenged on procedural issues, the dispute falls under administrative jurisdiction, even if it indirectly affects the private interests of the plaintiffs.
3. The Supreme Court overturned the decisions of the courts of previous instances and sent the case for continued consideration to the court of first instance.
