The Supreme Court of Ukraine has annulled previous court decisions regarding a lawsuit filed by the late Andriy Portnov, a former deputy head of the Presidential Administration under Viktor Yanukovych, against the media outlet hromadske. This ruling, issued on May 20, 2026, concluded that the earlier judgments did not align with legal standards.
Portnov’s lawsuit stemmed from an investigation titled “How Crimea Was Seized: Exclusive Recordings,” published in December 2023. He sought to have the information presented in the investigation declared false and damaging to his “honor, dignity, and business reputation.” Additionally, he requested that hromadske retract the information and remove it from their platforms.
In August 2024, the Pechersk District Court in Kyiv ruled in favor of Portnov, ordering hromadske to refute the claims made in the investigation and to take down the content from YouTube and other social media. The court also mandated that hromadske pay Portnov 170,357 UAH for legal expenses and 14,534 UAH in court fees.
The Kyiv Court of Appeals upheld this decision in December 2024, although it reduced the amount of court costs imposed on hromadske.
Upon reviewing the case in cassation, the Supreme Court determined that the lower courts’ rulings were inconsistent with legal principles. The court stated, “The requirement to prove the veracity of evaluative judgments is impossible to fulfill; it infringes upon freedom of thought as such. The threshold for permissible criticism of public figures is broader than that for private individuals. Unlike the latter, the former inevitably and consciously subjects all their words and actions to scrutiny by journalists and the public, thus must exhibit greater tolerance.”
The Supreme Court also emphasized that the materials published by hromadske addressed issues of significant public interest. Consequently, the court nullified all prior rulings that mandated hromadske to retract and remove the investigative report.
In its ruling, the Supreme Court noted that since Portnov had passed away, “the contested court decisions should be annulled, and the case should be closed.” This ruling took effect immediately and is considered final.
Background:
- In December 2024, the Kyiv Court of Appeals supported the Pechersk District Court’s decision, compelling hromadske to delete the investigation concerning Portnov. The outlet expressed its intention to contest the ruling.
- Andriy Portnov was shot dead in Madrid on May 21, 2025.
- Following his assassination, a Spanish court ordered the investigation into Portnov’s murder to be sealed.
- On February 25, 2026, Spain’s national police announced the arrest of a suspect in Germany, believed to be involved in the murder.
- According to reports from “Ukrainska Pravda,” the suspect arrested by Spanish authorities in Germany holds Russian citizenship.
The Ukrainian Supreme Court has overturned lower court rulings that favored the late Andriy Portnov in his defamation case against hromadske. The court emphasized the importance of freedom of expression and public interest in the materials published by the media outlet.