This particular case is one of several where the Prosecutor General s Office of the Russian Federation has challenged the privatisation of land parcels located within specially protected natural territories in the Tuapse District of the Krasnodar region.

Our clients acquired these land parcels between 2019 and 2022. These parcels were delineated from a larger plot which, in 2008, the Administration of the Tuapse District sold to the Olginka Boarding House, in accordance with the then-operative Article 36 of the Land Code of the Russian Federation.

In 2023, the Prosecutor General s Office of the Russian Federation lodged a claim with the Tuapse District Court against the district administration and 14 ultimate purchasers of the parcels. The claim sought to invalidate all transactions involving these parcels and to recognise the ownership rights over them as belonging to the Krasnodar region.

While the lower three judicial instances had ruled in favour of the claim, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation today acknowledged the merits of our firmcs arguments. Our argumentation posited the substantive legality of the contested transactions, the bona fide nature of the acquisition, the expiration of the limitation period, and significant breaches of procedural norms committed by the lower courts.

Specifically, the courts, without reasoned justification, dismissed our contention that all clients are legitimate owners of the disputed land parcels and unwarrantedly denied the clients requests for forensic examinations. The case will now undergo fresh consideration, albeit with due regard for the position articulated by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. We are currently awaiting the comprehensive text of the judicial determination.

The interests of the clients before the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation were represented by ABY s Managing Partner Yuri Pustovit and its Partner Sergey Radchenko.