On 31 March 2025 a dialogue was held on “Social reform and court decisions” to discuss the current state of enforcement of court decisions on social payments and special pensions. The discussions also covered possible potential legislative and institutional changes, and strategies for effectively communicating necessary social reforms to the public.

The event was attended by representatives from various fields, including judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, the Supreme Court, and administrative courts, representatives of the Pension Fund of Ukraine, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Social Policy, members of the Ukrainian Parliament, lawyers, economic experts, human rights activists, scholars, civil society representatives; and attorneys-at-law.

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe emphasized that non-enforcement or delayed enforcement of domestic court judgments has been “a major and long-standing structural deficiency” for Ukraine for many years. The European Court of Human Rights first addressed this issue in its decision “Kaysin and Others v. Ukraine” in 2001.

As of today, the state owes approximately 80 billion hryvnias in cases related to the assignment and recalculation of pensions. The urgency of implementing concrete and effective measures to address these challenges and uphold social justice has never been greater than it is today, as Ukraine continues its unwavering pursuit of EU integration while confronting the immense and multifaceted hardships brought by war.

The event was organised by the Aspen Institute Kyiv with the support of the Council of Europe projects “Support to the functioning of justice in the war and post-war context in Ukraine” and “Enhanced social protection in Ukraine”, as well as the EU project “Support to Justice Sector Reforms in Ukraine (PRAVO-JUSTICE III)”.