The Supreme Court of Justice dismissed the judge of the Supreme Administrative Court of Ukraine Anna Kuzmenko: the staffing shortage in the courts continues to grow

On May 21, the High Council of Justice adopted a decision to dismiss Anna Kuzmenko from the position of judge of the District Administrative Court of Kyiv.

The decision was made in connection with the judge’s submission of a resignation letter.

In the first four months of 2026, 59 judges have already been dismissed

The High Council of Justice reported that during January-April 2026, the council adopted a decision to dismiss 59 judges. Most of them left their positions due to resignation or of their own free will.

At the same time, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has supported the High Council’s proposal to appoint 36 judges to local and appellate courts since the beginning of the year. In May, the head of state also signed decrees on the appointment of 23 more judges.

The judicial system is experiencing a deepening personnel shortage

Despite the new appointments, the High Council of Justice emphasizes that the number of dismissed judges significantly exceeds the number of newly appointed ones.

Thus, in 2025, the President issued 87 decrees on the appointment of 143 judges, while 285 judges were dismissed during the same period.

In 2026, the situation remains similar: as of May 1, 28 decrees on the appointment of 36 judges were issued, but the staffing shortage in the courts continues to grow.

The workload on the courts is increasing

The Supreme Court of Justice notes that the shortage of judges directly affects the work of the judicial system. Due to the staffing shortage, the workload on current judges increases, which can lead to delays in the consideration of cases and additional burden on the justice system as a whole.

The Supreme Administrative Court of Ukraine was liquidated back in 2022

As a reminder, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a law on the liquidation of the District Administrative Court of Kyiv and the creation of the Kyiv City District Administrative Court.

The President submitted the relevant bill to parliament in April 2021 as an urgent bill, and on December 13, 2022, Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the law on the liquidation of the OASK.