The Supreme Court ordered the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to return the Bogoyavlensky Monastery complex in Kremenets to the state

The Supreme Court of Ukraine has put an end to a long-standing dispute by definitively rejecting the cassation appeal filed by the Holy Epiphany Convent of the Ternopil Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. According to Ukrinform, the court upheld the legality of the lower courts’ rulings ordering the expropriation of the monastery’s complex of buildings in favor of the state.

The legal proceedings, which lasted nearly three years, included more than 40 hearings. Representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church attempted to challenge the state’s claims, citing the nuns’ permanent residence in their cells and the risk of them being deprived of their homes. However, as emphasized by Igor Derevinsky, deputy director of the Kremenets-Pochayiv State Historical and Architectural Reserve, the complex is a non-residential architectural monument of national significance, and the agreement signed in the 1990s explicitly prohibits the use of the premises for permanent residence.

According to the case file, the term of the agreement for the free use of the buildings expired back in September 2023. The court deemed the monastery’s defense arguments unfounded, calling them an attempt to delay the process of returning state property. Previous attempts by representatives of the enforcement service and reserve staff to enter the premises to enforce the court’s decision were met with resistance from aggressive groups of individuals.

The Supreme Court’s decision is final and not subject to appeal. The religious organization is now required to vacate the premises, which are state property, thereby bringing this protracted legal dispute to a close.