Fundamental rights and the environment: Vitalii Urkevych, Secretary of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court, participated in the Annual Conference of the European Law Institute (ELI)

Correlation of fundamental human rights and environmental protection, protection of nature for a sustainable future, new challenges for lawyers and judges in the field of climate justice. These topics were the focus of discussion at the Annual Conference organised by the European Law Institute (ELI), which took place in Vienna (Austria) on 22-24 September 2025. The Supreme Court was represented at the conference and the ELI Advisory Committee by the Secretary of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court Vitalii Urkevych.

The key theme of the 2025 conference was fundamental rights and the environment. The event brought together leading legal experts from across Europe to discuss the relationship between legal systems, human rights and environmental protection in modern Europe.

During the expert panels, the participants examined how courts, legislators and business representatives are responding to environmental and human rights imperatives, discussed the role of the judiciary in climate and biodiversity crises, and trends in developing effective mechanisms in the areas of green finance, corporate sustainability and access to environmental justice to ensure effective strategies for a fairer, more sustainable and resilient future.

It should be noted that the Supreme Court has joined the European Law Institute (ELI) as an institutional member. The Supreme Court's membership in ELI is an important step in the context of the Europeanisation of the judiciary and the alignment of Ukraine's legal system with the standards of the European Union.