A dispute concerning the improper enforcement of a court judgment is to be resolved by way of judicial supervision and not by bringing a fresh claim – SC AdmCC

Where a person considers that a public authority has improperly enforced a court judgment, in particular by applying, in the course of its enforcement, a normative act which, in that person’s view, ought not to have been applied, the proper means of protection is the use of the special procedures of judicial supervision of the enforcement of a court judgment, and not the bringing of a fresh administrative claim.

This conclusion was reached by the Judicial Chamber for the consideration of cases concerning the protection of social rights of the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court.

In the present case a court judgment had earlier been delivered in the claimant’s favour ordering the recalculation and payment of a pension. In enforcing that judgment the Pension Fund authority calculated the relevant sums, yet informed the claimant that payment would be effected in accordance with the Procedure approved by Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 821 of 14 July 2025.

The claimant regarded such enforcement of the court judgment as improper and brought a fresh claim seeking, inter alia, payment without application of the said Procedure.

The courts of first instance and of appeal discontinued the proceedings in respect of that part of the claims.

The SC AdmCC agreed with those conclusions and observed that the existence in the Code of Administrative Procedure of Ukraine of special procedural mechanisms aimed at securing the proper and complete enforcement of a court judgment removes any necessity to bring a fresh claim in order to compel the defendant to enforce it. A court judgment is subject to direct enforcement without the adoption of an additional judicial decision, and questions concerning its non-enforcement or improper enforcement are to be resolved by way of the judicial supervision provided for by the CAP of Ukraine and/or by the application of the measures prescribed by the legislation on enforcement proceedings.

The Court noted that what is decisive for distinguishing a fresh administrative dispute from a dispute concerning the enforcement of a court judgment is not the mere fact that the public authority has adopted a new decision, performed a new calculation or applied a normative act, but the content, purpose and direct connection of the relevant actions with the enforcement of the court judgment.

If such actions constitute a means of implementing an obligation already established by the court, questions as to their lawfulness must be resolved within the framework of judicial supervision of the enforcement of the court judgment. In particular, a person may avail himself or herself of the mechanisms provided for by Articles 382, 382-1 to 382-3 and 383 of the CAP of Ukraine.

The SC AdmCC emphasised that the application of Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 821 in the course of enforcing a court judgment does not of itself create a new public-law dispute where the breach of which the person complains consists precisely in the improper enforcement of a judgment already delivered.

In the present case the Judicial Chamber departed from the conclusion of the Supreme Court set out in its ruling of 30 April 2026 in case No. 340/7985/25, according to which a dispute concerning the lawfulness of applying Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 821 in the course of enforcing a court judgment could be examined under a separate administrative claim.

Instead the Chamber endorsed the approach formulated by the Supreme Court in its ruling of 30 April 2026 in case No. 620/13341/25: where a dispute has arisen directly in connection with the enforcement of a court judgment, the relevant questions are to be resolved within the framework of the special procedures of judicial supervision.

Resolution of the SC AdmCC of 15 September 2026 in case No. 580/490/26 (administrative proceedings No. K/990/23528/26) – https://reyestr.court.gov.ua/Review/139885404.

This and other legal opinions of the Supreme Court are available in the Database of Legal Positions of the Supreme Court - https://lpd.court.gov.ua.