In Cherkasy, representatives of the OCU and city officials ignored a court hearing regarding the cathedral

The Economic Court of the Cherkasy Region held a hearing regarding a dispute over ownership of the Archangel Michael Cathedral of the Cherkasy Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church; however, the plaintiffs—representatives of the city authorities and the OCU—did not appear at the hearing. Despite the plaintiffs’ absence, the hearing drew widespread public attention.

As part of the filed lawsuit, representatives of the OCU are demanding that the church complex be recognized as an unauthorized structure and that ownership of it be granted to their organization. This concerns not only the cathedral but also the diocesan administration building, an orphanage, as well as other churches and auxiliary structures. The plaintiffs insist on legalizing the transfer of these properties to their control, asserting that the rights of the faithful of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) are not violated in the process.

Although the court denied more than 700 parishioners and the Cherkasy Diocese the right to participate in the proceedings as third parties, hundreds of believers, led by Metropolitan Theodosius, attended the hearing as observers. Representatives of the UOC emphasize that their diocese is the rightful owner of the complex and that the cathedral itself was seized through a hostile takeover on October 17, 2024. At present, the legal status of the properties remains the subject of legal proceedings, complicated by the revocation of the diocese’s state registration of rights by order of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, which is currently being challenged in court.