Raider attack against company from Ternopil successfully fought back 

Subject of complaint: Registration Service of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine 
Complaint in brief: A company from Ternopil filed a complaint with the Council against a raider attack. The Complainant is a small company providing car repair and maintenance services and owns, in particular, two facilities with an area of 3000 m2 in Ternopil. At the end of 2018, the Complainant’s real estate objects were re-registered to another owner. 
On December 11, a private notary of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast re-registered the Complainant’s property to another owner. The reason for it was allegedly the decision of one of the district courts of Donetsk, dated back to 2011. Four hours later, a Kyiv notary re-registered the property in favour of a new company. The next day she executed a sale and purchase agreement under which another owner bought two thirds of the property. The head of the company was also illegally changed. The attackers did not stop at that. They issued a series of mortgage obligations for the said real estate objects.
The Complainant promptly reported the National Police on the crime and filed a complaint with the Complaints Commission in the Sphere of State Registration of the Ministry of Justice (Anti-Raider Commission). The Complainant also appealed to the Business Ombudsman Council to protect its legitimate rights and recover the property.
Actions taken: The Council’s investigator examined case materials. She found out Donetsk court decision, as a reason for the first re-registration, was not selected by accident. Since the court is located in an uncontrolled territory of Ukraine, it is actually impossible to check the reality of its decisions. 
 
The Council’s investigator participated twice in the Anti-Raider Commission meeting and upheld the company’s position. Certain efforts were made to obtain a confirmation from the corresponding court in Donetsk (working in a controlled territory of Ukraine) regarding the fact of absence of the decision based on which property owners had been changed. 
 
Result achieved: With the Council’s facilitation, the Anti-Raider Commission cancelled unlawful registration actions against the company and completely renewed its rights. The Complainant thanked the Council for assistance in resolving the issue. The case was closed successfully.