Global cooperation among commercial courts: Supreme Court judges took part in the 6th SIFoCC Plenary Meeting

Vitalii Urkevych, Secretary of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court; Larysa Rohach, President of the Commercial Cassation Court within the Supreme Court; Kostiantyn Pilkov, Judge of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court; and Ivan Mishchenko, Judge of the Supreme Court at the Commercial Cassation Court, took part in the 6th Plenary Meeting of the Standing International Forum of Commercial Courts (SIFoCC), which on this occasion was held in New Delhi, India.

Over 180 delegates from 52 jurisdictions (as of 2025, SIFoCC brings together a total of 58 jurisdictions) discussed key issues in the development of commercial justice in a global context over the course of three days. The Forum brought together representatives of appellate and supreme courts from all continents. Ukraine, which became the 58th member country of this international community last year, participated in the conference in person for the first time.

Judges of the Supreme Court joined discussions on the use of artificial intelligence in the judicial system, the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments, climate challenges and threats, as well as global judicial cooperation and coordination in the context of developing and strengthening commercial courts.

In particular, during the plenary discussion titled “Corporate Legal Liability and Related Issues of Commercial Law in New and Global Contexts, with a Special Focus on Climate Change and the Environment”, Vitalii Urkevych, Secretary of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court, shared his views on the impact of the full-scale armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine on the environment. According to him, the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation threatens the right to a safe environment guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine, and the environmental damage caused by Russian aggression is extensive.

Commercial courts are currently dealing with claims for compensation for environmental damage brought against the Russian Federation. This raises the question of how to hold the Russian Federation accountable and recover compensation for the damage caused (often irreparable) to the environment, as this requires resolving the issue of state immunity of the aggressor state. Another challenge is the lack of means to serve notice on the defendant in such cases and the absence of effective mechanisms for enforcing such court decisions. Addressing these issues requires the use of international mechanisms. One significant step toward ensuring compensation for damage caused by the Russian Federation (including environmental damage) was the establishment in 2023, under the auspices of the Council of Europe, of the international Register of Damage Caused by the Aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.

During the breakout session titled “Leaders of the Future – a Roundtable for Young Judges,” the Secretary of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court joined the discussion on judicial career paths and spoke about his experience of participating in the competition for the position of judge of the reformed Supreme Court in 2016–2017, which was open both to experienced judges and to academics and attorneys.

Kostiantyn Pilkov spoke at the session “Common Standards and Approaches,” during which participants developed proposals for future guidelines aimed at increasing the efficiency of commercial dispute resolution. The judge emphasized that the goal should not be merely to formulate general procedural approaches common to all legal systems of the Forum’s member jurisdictions, but rather to create a review of best practices that would enable developing legal systems to borrow and adapt judicial efficiency tools that have not previously been available to them.

In Kostiantyn Pilkov’s view, particular attention should be paid to mechanisms for promoting alternative dispute resolution (primarily arbitration and mediation), procedural tools enabling courts to respond to abuses of process, and instruments for addressing bad-faith conduct in the preservation and obtaining of evidence.

The President of the Commercial Cassation Court of the Supreme Court, Larysa Rohach, held a series of bilateral meetings with judges from India, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the United States of America, as well as with representatives of judicial systems from other Asian and European countries.

Ivan Mishchenko took part in the closing session and delivered a report on key challenges facing the judiciary, which was highly praised by conference participants.

Participation in such events facilitates Ukraine’s engagement in dialogue with representatives of the global community specifically in the field of commercial justice, enables the exchange of experience and best practices, and enhances the image and investment attractiveness of the state.

It should be recalled that the Forum, established in 2017, aims to promote cooperation among commercial courts (including appellate courts) worldwide, support the rule of law, and assist developing jurisdictions.