Speeches, Papers and Interviews

Speeches

On the 7th of April, the Lawyering Peace Program at American University recorded an audio podcast in conversation with Professor Tetyana Antsupova, interviewed by Dr. Paul R. Williams, about the progress Ukraine has already made in judicial vetting, the Constitutional Court appointments, and transparency - and the role of long-term strategic planning to ensure independence, public trust, and legal compatibility with the EU. 

The podcast is available on: Apple, Spotify, YouTube and Podbean.

The Bar Council International Rule of Law Lecture 2023, given on Tuesday, 21 November, by Professor Tetyana Antsupova , former Judge of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, explored the delicate task of balancing judicial reform with independence, affirming the judiciary's role as a stabilising force, even in the face of external aggression. Watch Here. 

On December 2nd, 2024, Professor Antsupova participated in a conversation with Leverhulme Visiting Professor Justice Joel Ngugi, moderated by Professor Ambreena Manji, about the work of judges in contexts of intense pressure and great change. Drawing on the experiences of Kenya and Ukraine, the conversation explored themes such as constitutional and judicial reform, the role of judges in times of transition, the work of judges beyond adjudication, judicial vetting, and judicial diplomacy.

The conversation "Judiciaries Under Pressure" was organised by the BA International team within the British Academy Global Perspectives Series.

Concept Papers and Reports

The discussion about the need for a strategy for the judiciary in Ukraine has been ongoing since the 2016 judiciary reform. Its importance has become even more critical during the full-scale invasion of Russia on the territory of Ukraine in February 2022. Among the recommendations of the European Commission in Ukraine 2023 Report on EU Enlargement policy: "A new strategy for the reform of the justice system to respond to the challenges of wartime still needs to be developed, in a transparent and inclusive manner, and adopted".

Due to the instability in the functioning of judicial governance bodies during the last five years, the Ukrainian judiciary itself has been unable to consolidate and develop its Strategy. The papers presented to you are an insightful reflection from the perspective of judges of the Supreme Court (Ukraine), who are members of the Advisory Board of the Project on the issues within the judiciary and potential solutions from a strategic standpoint.

October 2025       Judicary in Ukraine: Evolution in a Context of Systemic Deficiencies and Endless Reforms

September 2024  Proposals for strengthening the capacity of the Ukrainian judiciary in the short and long-term perspectives 

Written Interviews

(October 2024) Interviews with the Deputy Chairman of the High Council of Justice (HCJ), Dmytro Lukianov, and with Members of the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine (HQCJ, Commission) focusing on the EU-Ukraine Bilateral Screening Session on Chapter 23, "Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights and Freedoms" held on September 17-19, 2024, and preparation of the Ukrainian delegation to this Session on the background of war. Read the interviews here and here.

(October 2024) Reforming Ukraine's Judiciary - EU Accession, Democracy, and the Rule of Law: In Conversation with Tetyana Antsupova and Sergii Koziakov. We are delighted to share the written interview conducted by the Review of Democracy (RevDem), the online live platform of the CEU Democracy Institute in Budapest, Rule of Law section editor Oliver Garner, with Professor Tetyana Antsupova and Dr. Sergii Koziakov, explicates the objectives, scope, and aspirations of the Project and far beyond. Read it here. 

(January 2025) The proposed series of interviews highlights key aspects of Ukraine's judiciary's modern history, beginning with the country's declaration of independence on August 24, 1991. The four interviews feature memoirs from lawyers who became judges during the post-Soviet transformative period and testimonies from individuals involved in earlier events predating independence. They also explore how lawyers attained judicial status when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, where the Communist Party maintained a monopoly on state power, including control over the judiciary.

• Written Interview with Valentyna Danishevska, former judge and the President of the Supreme Court (Ukraine) (2017-2021), focused on the specificities of legal education and the judges' career in the post-Soviet era and after the judicial reform 2016 in Ukraine. Read it here.
• Written Interview with Mykola Mishyn, Ukrainian lawyer and former judge, member of the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine (2014-2019), focused on specifics of legal education and judicial careers during the late Soviet era and beyond. Read it here.
• Written Interview with Valentyna Ustymenko, former Ukrainian judge of local, district, and appeal courts (1982-2014), and member of the HQCJ (2014-2019), focused on specifics of legal education and judicial careers during the late Soviet era and beyond. Read it here.
• Written Interview with Mykhailo Makarchuk, Ukrainian lawyer and judge who served as Local Court Judge (1986-2001), Appellate Court Judge (2001-2011), Judge of the High Specialized Court for Civil and Criminal Cases (2011-2016) and Member of the High Qualification Commission of Judges (2014-2019). The interview focused on the peculiarities of legal education and the career of judge in the transition from the Soviet to the post-Soviet era. Read it here.

(March 2025) Interview with Stanislav Shchotka, a Ukrainian lawyer who served as a prosecutor from 1986 to 1997 and as a judge of the High Arbitration Court, High Commercial Court, and Supreme Court of Ukraine from 1997 to 2010, and Deputy Chairman of the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine from 2014 to 2019, focused on legal education, HR policy, features of his Prosecutorial and Judicial Career on the background of transition period from Soviet times to the Yanukovych Presidency (2010) and beyond. Read it here.

(June 2025) Written interview with Dr. Rasim Babanly, a Ukrainian lawyer who has served as First Deputy Chief of Secretariat of the Supreme Court (Ukraine) since 2023. In the Supreme Court, he is responsible for analytical work, international relations, and communication; he created the Legal Position Database of the Supreme Court, which utilises AI and, most recently, generative AI. The interview is focusing on the implementation of the judicial reform in Ukraine and the technological potential in both digitisation and the use of artificial intelligence in the judiciary. Read it here.

(December 2025) Written Interview with Hryhorii USYK, judge of the Supreme Court, Chairman of the High Council of Justice (HCJ) (January 2023 - present), focused on the role, independence, and functioning of judicial governance body - the HCJ - particularly the coordination between branches of state power, the mechanisms protecting judicial independence, and the potential impact of artificial intelligence on improving the quality and efficiency of justice. Read it here

Video Interviews

(November 2024) Video interview with Professor Paul Lemmens, former judge in the European Court of Human Rights and current Chair of the Administrative Tribunal of the Council of Europe, focusing on judicial reforms in Ukraine. Watch here.

(November 2024) Video interview with the judges of the Supreme Court (Ukraine) - Olena Kibenko, Kostiantyn Pilkov, and Ivan Mishchenko, focusing on the issue of public trust and confidence in the Ukrainian judiciary. Watch here.

(February 2025) Video interview with Lord David Neuberger, Baron Neuberger of Abbotsbury, President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (2012 - 2017), Non-Permanent Judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal, judge of Singapore International Commercial Court, focusing on Trust and Confidence in the Judiciary in Ukraine and Beyond. Watch here.

(February 2025) Video interview with Judge Anna Adamska-Galant, European Court of Human Rights, focusing on Trust and Confidence in the Judiciary in Ukraine and Beyond. Watch here.