Myroslav Hnatiuk, partner at Benchers Law Firm, in cooperation with a group of other attorneys, represented JSC Ukreximbank before the Supreme Court in a dispute related to the debt of a major Ukrainian ceramic tiles producer and distributor.

The case concerned the creditor claims of JSC Ukreximbank to a property guarantor, a part of the group of companies of the said manufacturer. These claims were recognised by the Commercial Court of Kyiv, but the debtor tried to contest them first in the court of appeal and then in the court of cassation.

Since 2007, the manufacturer has received over USD 60 million in loans from JSC Ukreximbank. However, since 2013, it has completely stopped debt servicing, initiated bankruptcy filings against the companies — the principal debtor and property guarantors — and is still evading payment of the loan.

Due to the complexity of the disputed issues and the importance of their resolution for the formation of judicial practice, the case was referred to the Judicial Chamber for Bankruptcy Cases of the Commercial Court of Cassation of the Supreme Court.

Ultimately, the cassation court accepted the arguments of the lawyers representing the state-owned bank and ruled in favour on 16 August 2023. The court recognised the creditor claims of JSC Ukreximbank for more than UAH 830 million secured by a mortgage and ordered the receiver to include them in the register of creditors' claims.

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