For candidates for the position of judge of administrative and commercial courts of appeal, the 23-month competitive marathon has come to an end.
On August 15, 2025, the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine selected 42 winners of the competition for administrative courts of appeal and 55 winners of the competition for commercial courts of appeal.
The Commission will immediately send recommendations to the High Council of Justice for the appointment of all competition winners to the positions of judges of the courts of appeal.
This is the first time since the amendments to the legislation were made in 2016, that judges will be appointed to the courts of appeal based on the results of a qualification assessment during an open competition. This competition, which is historic for Ukraine and was announced by the High Council of Justice on September 14, 2023, has never been held before, and judges to the court of appeal were appointed by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. Candidates competed for 67 positions in administrative courts of appeal and 58 positions in commercial courts of appeal.
Given the shortage of personnel in the judicial system, the main task facing the High Council of Justice was to fill the courts with new judges, i.e., to ensure access to justice for Ukrainian citizens. This is also important in view of the acceleration of our country’s European integration processes, as the right to a fair trial is a key European democratic value.
Stages of the competition:
- September 2023 (September 14,2023) – announcement of competition
- December 2023 – submission of documents for participation in the competition
- March – April 2024 – decision of the issue of admission
- June 2024 – qualification assessment of candidates was scheduled
- September 2024 – March 2025 – Stage I of the qualification assessment – qualification exam
- May 2025 – results of the special check of candidates were established
- May – August 2025 – Stage II of the qualification assessment – dossier study and interview
Candidates who were included in the list of winners of the competition submitted applications for the position of judge, indicating a specific administrative court of appeal or commercial court of appeal. When choosing a vacant position of judge, a participant could not claim the position chosen by previously invited participants or those participants with a higher position in the ranking who had submitted their applications in advance.
The Commission ensured the openness and transparency of this process at the final stage of the competition. The procedure was broadcasted live on the Internet (on the Commission’s official YouTube page). It should be noted that judges, lawyers, and academics who met the qualification requirements participated in the competition. At the interview stage, the Public Integrity Council joined the assessment process, checking candidates for compliance with the criteria of integrity and professional ethics.
The Commission is currently conducting a competition for the general courts of appeal. On August 14, 2025, the Panels of the HQCJ completed interviews with candidates for the Sumy Court of Appeal and the Zhytomyr Court of Appeal. The Commission plans to make recommendations for appointments to these courts in September.