In early May, at 11 p.m., Natalia received a notification from her bank: her account had been frozen and her funds seized. The specific sum of UAH 8626.83 was involved — an amount she had disbursed amid a lawsuit half a dozen years prior. To her surprise, this long-resolved case had suddenly re-emerged.
Our regional lawyer in Luhanska Oblast, Alina Zahlada, stepped in to unravel the situation and worked to release the seized amount. We share Natalia’s story, which might serve as a helpful guide for those experiencing a similar problem.
“At the beginning of the full-scale war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, the Cabinet of Ministers enabled citizens to access their frozen assets in seized accounts, given that the debts did not surpass UAH 100,000. On May 6, this exemption was revoked, and numerous Ukrainians started receiving bank notifications regarding seizures,” Alina explains. “However, Natalia had already paid off the debt she was informed of, and she can’t possibly repay this amount again.”
Currently residing in Volynska Oblast, Natalia is an IDP originally from Luhanska Oblast. In 2018, she was involved in a litigation process concerning the partitioning of her apartment and was bound by the Lysychansk City Court’s decision to pay the disputed amount. Upon her lawyer’s counsel, she paid in advance to demonstrate her financial capability.
The sum Natalia remitted went into the court’s deposit account, intended to be transferred to the State Executive Service (SES) account and subsequently to the other litigant.
In 2019, the Lysychansk SES initiated enforcement proceedings following the court’s decision and arrested the money. The process was meant to be concluded, and the seizure lifted once the other party received the money. It remains unclear if it did receive the money. However, when the prohibition on account seizures was revoked, Natalia discovered that her case was still active, and her funds remained blocked.
“I pored over all the resolutions, sought legal advice, and approached the SES in Volynska Oblast. They informed me they had no registers from Luhanska Oblast, so I had to find a solution in Lysychansk. Our bureaucratic system leaves much to be desired,” reflects Natalia.
A friend from Dnipropetrovska Oblast suggested an online chat where she might find valuable insights regarding her current situation. There, she found the contact information of our lawyer, Alina Zahlada, who practices in Luhanska Oblast. Natalia reached out for assistance.
“I contacted the enforcement division in Luhanska Oblast, went over all the documents, and realized that Natalia’s money had been moved to the State Judicial Administration’s account. The applicant’s account was frozen, implying the State Executive Service did not conclude the proceedings,” Alina reports.
The situation was further complicated as the Lysychansk court had been destroyed, and its jurisdiction was transferred to another court in Dnipropetrovska Oblast. This meant Natalia had to retrieve her money from a court deposit, which in reality, no longer existed.
Instead, Alina navigated an alternative route: she assisted Natalia in communicating with the head of the Lysychansk SES, who managed to access information about our applicant from the SES register and overturn the seizure.
“Alina was incredibly helpful. She has a wide network in Lysychansk. I lodged an application with the Lysychansk SES to revoke the seizure on a Friday evening, and by the following week, I received a notification from my bank that the seizure had been overturned. I’m grateful to your team for your assistance,” Natalia acknowledges the legal support she received.
We are pleased that we could promptly address this issue and save Natalia’s money.
If you, as an internally displaced person, need legal guidance on IDP registration, reinstatement or allocation of social benefits and services, please complete this brief form: https://bit.ly/3jHq2eg.
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We provide free legal assistance to affected individuals as part of the project Supporting the Capacity of the Social Protection System to Register Internally Displaced Persons, financed by the UN Refugee Agency in Ukraine.