On 30 April 2025, the IV All-Ukrainian Roundtable on “Implementation of Legislation during Martial Law in Ukraine: Current Challenges and Ways to Overcome Them” was held online.

The event was attended by judges, lawyers, academics, representatives of public authorities and higher education institutions, who discussed problematic aspects of law enforcement in times of war, peculiarities of enforcement of court decisions and other important issues of the day.

During the roundtable, Galyna Yurovska delivered a presentation on “Activities of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine under martial law”, in which she focused on important aspects of the work of the constitutional jurisdiction body in times of war.

As the judge noted, with the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the territory of our country by the Russian Federation, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine took a number of important measures, in particular, it terminated the Memorandum of Cooperation between the Constitutional Courts of Ukraine and Belarus, initiated the termination of the membership of the Constitutional Court of Russia and the Constitutional Court of Belarus in the Conference of European Constitutional Courts, the World Conference of Constitutional Justice (WCCJ).

Galyna Yurovska emphasised that Ukrainian society has shown extraordinary resilience and commitment to the values that underpin the modern European identity: democracy, freedom, human rights and dignity.

The judge noted that certain restrictions on human and civil rights and freedoms may be imposed under martial law or a state of emergency, and drew attention to the list of rights that, in accordance with Article 64 of the Constitution of Ukraine, cannot be restricted even during martial law.

The judge also highlighted the key principles adhered to by the Constitutional Court of Ukraine: each restriction must be justified by the Constitution of Ukraine and clearly set out in law, restrictions must be temporary, and the regulatory framework must be transparent and clear.

Galyna Yurovska stressed that in a crisis or emergency situation, when a threat to national security arises, the ability of the parliament, government and other state institutions to take responsibility and take the necessary measures to eliminate it becomes extremely important.

According to the judge, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine takes into account that a full-scale war has forced Ukraine to adapt democratic mechanisms to emergency conditions.

“Since the beginning of 2022, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine has delivered many decisions that are of great public importance for Ukraine during the martial law period,” Galyna Yurovska emphasised. These include decisions on enhanced social protection for military personnel; on the full name of religious organisations; on the guaranteed level of social protection for citizens affected by the Chornobyl disaster; on the guarantee of judicial control over the observance of the rights of persons in custody; on the binding nature of a court decision.

In conclusion, the judge focused on the legal positions formed in a number of the Court's decisions delivered in late 2024 and early 2025. She noted that the Constitutional Court of Ukraine upholds key constitutional values in its decisions.

The event was organised by the Committee on Advocacy Practice and Advanced Training of the Bar Council of Zaporizhzhia Region jointly with the Bar Council and the Qualification and Disciplinary Commission of the Bar of Zaporizhzhia Region, as well as the Regional Office of the State Property Fund of Ukraine in Rivne and Zhytomyr Regions, Educational and Scientific Institute of Law by I. Malynovskyi of Ostroh Academy and the Classical Private University.