Insolvency & Restructuring · Ukraine
Insolvency lawyers in Ukraine for debtors, creditors and company directors
Insolvency work sits at the meeting point of commercial law, procedure and time limits, and the first decisions are usually the ones that matter most. Tell us what you are facing and we will match you with a specialist whose practice covers insolvency matters in Ukraine. The matching service costs you nothing.
- Specialists in commercial and insolvency disputes
- Advocates admitted under Ukraine’s regulated Bar
- Free matching, no obligation to instruct
Free matching · No obligation · Average first reply in 24–48 hours
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Tell us about your situation and receive a free, confidential case review.
Before you instruct anyone
A system built on codes, procedure and strict time limits
When a company in Ukraine can no longer meet its obligations, the choices made in the first weeks tend to settle the outcome for everyone involved — the debtor, the creditors, the directors and the employees who depend on the business. Insolvency lawyers in Ukraine work inside a continental civil-law system founded on codified legislation, where commercial (economic) courts hear business disputes and the cassation chambers of the Supreme Court work to keep practice consistent. Whether you are a creditor trying to recover what you are owed, a director facing the prospect of liquidation, or an investor looking at distressed assets, the first useful step is to establish which court, which procedure and which time limits apply to your case. Describe your situation in a few minutes and we will match you with a specialist who handles insolvency work in Ukraine.
Country guide
How insolvency-related proceedings work in Ukraine
Ukraine is a civil-law jurisdiction: courts apply the Constitution and codified legislation rather than judicial precedent, and procedure is set out in separate codes for commercial, civil and administrative cases. These are the practical features that shape an insolvency-related matter.
Commercial (economic) courts hear business disputes
Business and insolvency-related disputes between companies are heard by Ukraine’s specialised commercial (economic) courts, which sit alongside the general courts. Cases start at local level, may be reviewed by an appellate court, and can reach the commercial cassation chamber of the Supreme Court, which exists to keep judicial practice consistent across the country.
Representation before the Supreme Court is reserved to advocates
Under Article 131-2 of the Constitution, representation before the Supreme Court in cassation is exercised exclusively by advocates, and legal entities must also be represented by advocates in the higher instances. At first instance and on appeal, a natural person may appear in person, but a company in a complex insolvency matter is generally better served by an admitted advocate.
Court fees follow a formula set by statute
Court fees (sudovyi zbir) are governed by the Law ‘On Court Fee’. For a property claim, a legal entity pays 1.5% of the claim value, within a floor and ceiling expressed in subsistence minimums; natural persons pay 1%. Non-property claims carry a lower fixed amount. The subsistence minimum is reset annually by the State Budget Law.
Legal fees are agreed, and support may be available
There are no statutory tariffs for legal fees in Ukraine: remuneration is agreed freely between the advocate and the client in the contract for legal services. Court fees and, within limits, the winning party’s legal costs may be recovered from the losing party. Free primary legal aid is available to everyone, and free secondary legal aid to defined vulnerable categories.
Time limits run under a suspended regime
General civil claims are subject to a three-year limitation period, with shorter periods for certain matters. Limitation periods were suspended while martial law was in force, and their running was restored from 4 September 2025 by Law No. 4434-IX. Justice continues to be administered, but only by courts established under the Constitution.
Filings increasingly go through the electronic system
Ukraine’s Unified Judicial Information and Telecommunication System (UJITS) provides an Electronic Cabinet and an Electronic Court module for filing documents and exchanging procedural papers, as well as videoconferencing for hearings. The Unified State Register of Court Decisions has published anonymised decisions since 2006, which helps in assessing how a comparable dispute has been treated.
Every country-specific statement on this page is taken from official Ukrainian and European sources — the e-Justice portal, the Verkhovna Rada legislation database, the Supreme Court of Ukraine and the Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision — consulted in 2025.
- European e-Justice Portal — National justice systems: Ukraine
- Law of Ukraine ‘On the Bar and Practice of Law’ No. 5076-VI
- Law of Ukraine ‘On Court Fee’ No. 3674-VI
- Civil Code of Ukraine — limitation periods
- Labour Code of Ukraine — employment claim periods
- Code of Administrative Procedure of Ukraine
- Law of Ukraine No. 4434-IX on the renewal of limitation periods
- Law of Ukraine No. 389-IX on the legal regime of martial law
- Supreme Court of Ukraine — the operation of justice under martial law
- Supreme Court of Ukraine — UJITS and electronic justice
- Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision
- Ukrainian National Bar Association
The problem
What makes insolvency so hard to handle alone
Most people recognise the symptoms long before they know which procedure applies to them.
You cannot tell insolvency from a cash-flow gap
Debt pressure, unpaid invoices and a temporary shortage of cash look almost identical from the inside. Reading the situation wrongly can expose directors to personal risk or cause a creditor’s claim to be brought too late.
Creditors move faster than your paperwork
Enforcement steps, blocked accounts and calls from suppliers accumulate while you are still gathering documents. Every reply sent without a clear view of the applicable procedure and time limits can quietly weaken your position.
You are managing it across a language barrier
Ukrainian is the language of the courts, and filings now run through a national electronic system. Handling a matter from abroad, or without fluent legal Ukrainian, adds a layer of risk to each procedural step.
How we help
Matched with a specialist, not a directory listing
We keep the process short and focused on the facts of your matter.
Matched on subject matter
We look for specialists whose work actually covers insolvency, restructuring and creditor claims in Ukraine, rather than sending your enquiry to whoever happens to answer first.
Working within the regulated Bar
Advocates in Ukraine are members of a self-governing Bar, entered in the Single Register of Advocates of Ukraine, so the professionals you speak to practise inside a known framework.
Cost of matching: nothing
You pay nothing to be introduced. The fee arrangement, if you decide to instruct, is agreed directly with the specialist in the contract for legal services.
A reply you can plan around
Most enquiries receive a first response within 24 to 48 hours, so you can decide whether to proceed before deadlines narrow your options further.
Also available
Cross-border matters and neighbouring jurisdictions
Insolvency often crosses a border — a Ukrainian debtor with Polish suppliers, or a creditor based elsewhere in Europe. We also match enquiries in these countries.
Questions
Frequently asked questions about insolvency in Ukraine
What do insolvency lawyers in Ukraine actually handle?
They advise debtors, creditors, directors and shareholders on business debt situations: assessing whether a company can still be rescued, preparing and defending creditor claims, handling disputes before the commercial (economic) courts, and advising on the personal exposure of directors when a business can no longer pay.
Which court deals with a business insolvency dispute in Ukraine?
Business disputes between companies fall to the specialised commercial (economic) courts, which are part of the ordinary court system. A case begins at local level, can be reviewed on appeal, and may reach the commercial cassation chamber of the Supreme Court, whose role is to keep practice uniform.
Do I have to travel to Ukraine to appear in court?
Not necessarily. A party may be represented by an advocate, and Ukraine’s Unified Judicial Information and Telecommunication System includes videoconferencing for hearings and an Electronic Court module for filings. Representation by an advocate is mandatory before the Supreme Court in cassation and for legal entities in the higher instances.
Must the person representing me be a member of the Bar?
Yes. Membership of the Bar is compulsory to practise as an attorney (advokat) in Ukraine. Candidates need a complete higher legal education, a command of the official language, at least two years of legal experience, a qualification exam, a six-month traineeship, the oath and a certificate, and are listed in the Single Register of Advocates.
How are legal costs and court fees calculated in Ukraine?
Court fees follow the Law ‘On Court Fee’: for a property claim a legal entity pays 1.5% of the claim value within statutory floor and ceiling limits, while natural persons pay 1%. Legal fees have no official tariff and are freely agreed in the contract; costs may be recovered from the losing party within procedural limits.
Did martial law change the deadlines for claims in Ukraine?
Martial law was introduced on 24 February 2022. Limitation periods were suspended during that period, and their running was restored from 4 September 2025 by Law No. 4434-IX. If time passed while your claim was frozen, the calculation needs to be checked against this change before you file.
Next step
Tell us what you are facing, and we will find the right specialist
A short description of your situation is enough to start. We review it, identify specialists in Ukraine whose practice covers insolvency and commercial debt, and introduce you — at no cost and with no obligation to instruct anyone.