Constant tax audits and groundless blocking of tax invoice registration, illegal searches and seizures of property, abuse by local governments – all these are the realities of the modern Ukrainian business environment.
Most entrepreneurs in Ukraine have become accustomed to the fact that filing complaints is a rather ineffective way to protect and restore their violated rights. In most cases, complaints are either rejected or ignored entirely. That is why business owners who have repeatedly faced unlawful decisions by state authorities tend to immediately turn to the courts after their complaint is denied by a higher authority.
However, a relatively new method of protecting businesses from illegal actions and decisions by government bodies has been introduced in Ukraine—the option to file complaints with the Business Ombudsman Council.
When reviewing business complaints, the Business Ombudsman Council submits requests to government and local authorities for information regarding the circumstances of alleged violations of business rights. It also conducts joint meetings with the leadership of these authorities to agree on ways to eliminate violations and provides recommendations for their resolution.
Due to this, the popularity of filing complaints with the Business Ombudsman Council as a method of business protection has been steadily growing.
From 2015 to 2020, the Business Ombudsman Council received over 7,000 complaints.
Approximately 30% of these complaints were rejected by the Council.
Such a large number of rejected complaints is due to the fact that preparing a complaint requires professional legal knowledge, because according to the Council’s Regulations, the Business Ombudsman may declare a complaint inadmissible and refuse to consider it in cases where:
- The complaint is not directed at a government body.
- The company has already filed a lawsuit in court to protect its rights.
- The company has not utilized administrative appeal procedures.
- The deadline for filing the complaint has been missed.
Even if a business has genuinely suffered from government actions, and the complaint meets the regulatory requirements, the Business Ombudsman may still reject it if the legal violations are not described correctly or if there is a lack of proper supporting evidence.
If your business interests have been affected by actions or inactions of government authorities, it is advisable to seek assistance from legal professionals rather than navigating the complexities of Ukraine’s ever-changing legislation on your own.
At Winnerlex Law Firm, highly qualified attorneys specialize in various fields of law—tax, commercial, land, customs, and criminal law. This enables them to analyze each case comprehensively and provide optimal legal solutions. After thoroughly examining the circumstances of your case, our lawyers will determine whether legal norms and your rights have been violated and advise on the best course of action for restoring them.
Winnerlex attorneys have extensive experience in filing complaints with the Business Ombudsman Council and overseeing the entire review process. Our success stories confirm the effectiveness of this approach, as our specialists have successfully defended clients’ rights in tax disputes, cases of local government misconduct, and abuses by law enforcement officials.
ASSISTANCE IN APPEALING TO THE BUSINESS OMBUDSMAN INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING SERVICES:
- Providing consultations on the violated rights of a business entity due to a decision or inaction of a government authority.
- Submitting attorney requests to government bodies to obtain the necessary information and documents regarding the violated rights of the business entity.
- Determining the list of required documents to be submitted to the Business Ombudsman Council for complaint preparation.
- Preparing and submitting complaints to the Business Ombudsman Council.
- Providing legal support during the review of submitted complaints by the Business Ombudsman Council.
Practice experience: 19 years
Specialization: litigation support, tax, customs and antitrust practices, agricultural law, IT and M&A
Practice experience: 21 years Specialization: support of economic, civil, labor and administrative disputes, energy
Practice experience: 11 years Specialization: tax, customs and corporate disputes, support of inspections, contractual activities
Practice experience: 6 years
Specialisation: business and civil law, tax and customs practice, corporate law, registration and reorganisation of business
Practice experience: 11 years Specialization: support of economic, civil, labor and administrative disputes, inspections
If your legal rights as a business entity have been violated due to unlawful actions or decisions of government authorities, you should use the procedure for filing a complaint with the Business Ombudsman Council.
If less than one year has passed since the unlawful actions or decisions of government authorities, it is advisable to submit a complaint to the Business Ombudsman Council.
To confirm the violation of clients’ rights due to unlawful actions or decisions of government authorities, supporting documents must be provided.
If it is necessary to protect business rights from unlawful actions and decisions of government authorities within a short timeframe, it is better to appeal to the Business Ombudsman Council rather than to the court.
A legal entity or an individual entrepreneur affected by unlawful actions or decisions of government authorities.
A complaint can be submitted by mail or online via the official website of the Council – https://boi.org.ua.
A complaint must be submitted to the Business Ombudsman Council no later than one year from the date of the unlawful actions or decisions of government authorities.
The complaint is reviewed within three months.
No. The services of the Business Ombudsman Council are free of charge.
