Information from the Unified State Register on a person entitled to act on behalf of a legal entity on the basis of self-representation is sufficient confirmation of the authority of such a person to act in court - SC GC

Information about a person who has the right to act on behalf of a legal entity on the basis of self-representation in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, Individual Entrepreneurs and Public Associations is an official and sufficient confirmation that a legal entity acts in court through a certain person on the basis of self-representation (subject to appropriate restrictions on powers, if any).

If such information is submitted to the court and there is no dispute in relation to the dispute reported to the court, there are no grounds to additionally confirm these powers with documents that are in their content the same as those specified in part 3 of Article 56 of the Commercial Procedural Code of Ukraine - a charter, regulation, employment agreement (contract), since the court may rely on information from the Unified State Register as reliable.

This conclusion was made by the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court.

A farm appealed to the court of appeal against a local court's decision to dismiss the farm's claim for non-pecuniary damage against the state.

The court of appeal opened proceedings and twice ordered the person who signed the appeal on behalf of the farm to provide the court with a charter, regulations or employment contract that would confirm his participation in the case under the rules of self-representation of a legal entity.

Due to the failure to comply with these requirements, the court of appeal closed the appeal proceedings.

The Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court noted that the wording of part 3 of Article 56 of the Commercial Procedural Code of Ukraine allows for the conclusion that the self-representation of a legal entity is possible through designated persons. In addition to the head and a member of the executive body, such persons may also be other individuals authorised to act on behalf of the legal entity in accordance with the law, charter, regulations, employment agreement (contract).

The person through whom a legal entity acts on the basis of self-representation must confirm this status to the court. At the same time, the procedural law does not contain an exhaustive list of documents that may be used to confirm the powers of a person through whom a legal entity acts on the basis of self-representation. Obviously, these may also be the documents specified in part 3 of Article 56 of the Commercial Procedural Code of Ukraine, in particular, the charter, regulations, employment agreement (contract).

Pursuant to the Law of Ukraine ‘On State Registration of Legal Entities, Individual Entrepreneurs and Public Associations’, the Unified State Register contains information about a legal entity, including the head of the legal entity and other persons (if any) who may act on behalf of the legal entity, and information on restrictions on representation of the legal entity.

In view of the foregoing, the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court concluded that if the relevant information about the person entitled to act on behalf of the legal entity on the basis of self-representation is entered into the Unified State Register, this information is an official and sufficient confirmation that the legal entity acts in court through a certain person on the basis of self-representation (taking into account the relevant restrictions on powers, if any).

However, the court of appeal did not take into account a printout from the Unified State Register of information on the individual farm as a legal entity, which indicated the signatory of the appeal as a person authorised to act on behalf of this legal entity.

Thus, the case file contained proper and sufficient evidence of the appellant's authority to act on behalf of the individual farm on the basis of self-representation.

Resolution of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of 20 November 2024 in case No. 910/16580/23 (proceedings No. 12-30гс24) - https://reyestr.court.gov.ua/Review/123466967.

This and other legal positions of the Supreme Court can be found in the Database of Legal Positions of the Supreme Court - https://lpd.court.gov.ua.