New judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine is a former OSCE representative and human rights expert
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree appointing Oleksandr Vodiannikov as a judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine. This decision, published on June 27 on the official website of the head of state under number 438, is of particular importance for eliminating personnel shortages and restoring the functioning of this key judicial institution in the country. The lack of a sufficient number of judges has long been an obstacle to the full constitutional work of the court, so the appointment of a new judge is an important step in reforming the justice system. Oleksandr Vodiannikov is a Ukrainian lawyer with significant experience in the areas of human rights and the rule of law. During his career, he worked in international structures, in particular, from 2014 to 2022 he held the position of national legal advisor at the OSCE Project Coordinators in Ukraine. In this role, he provided legal support to the Ukrainian parliament, government structures and advisory bodies in the areas of justice, security and human rights protection, promoting the implementation of European standards and supporting reform processes. After completing his mandate in the role of coordinator, Vodiannikov continued his cooperation with the OSCE within the framework of the Ukraine Support Program. In November 2022, he became a Senior Project Officer in the direction of the rule of law and human rights. In this position, he was responsible for the development and implementation of many programs, is the main coordinator for the organization of conferences, seminars and round tables, as well as a regular speaker at specialized international forums. His expert opinion, experience in working with international standards and the desire for transparency and openness of institutions will certainly be useful in his new judicial activities. In his motivation letter, Vodiannikov outlined a number of important priorities that he seeks to achieve in his work as a judge of the Constitutional Court. Among them are the establishment of principles in constitutional practice, the development of effective dialogue between the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and courts of general jurisdiction, the introduction of gender-sensitive approaches, raising the standards of professional ethics of judges, and reforming the procedure for preparing and adopting court decisions. He plans to pay special attention to increasing the openness and transparency of the court's work for citizens and society as a whole, which is key to restoring trust in the domestic judicial system. The current appointment takes place in the context of a blatant personnel crisis, which significantly complicates the functioning of the Constitutional Court. According to data as of January 2025, only 11 judges remained in the structure out of the required 18. This means that the court could not, at least in its current composition, hold sessions of the Grand Chamber - the only body that considers the most important constitutional proceedings. The loss of the powers of the Second Senate further complicated the situation, as the judiciary operated only in panels and the First Senate, which considered individual constitutional complaints. This state of affairs provoked sharp criticism from experts and reformist circles, in particular Karina Aslanyan from the Laboratory of Legislative Initiatives, who in her publication "Competition for the Constitutional Court of Ukraine: (Un)Learned Lessons" repeatedly emphasized the need for urgent personnel changes and systemic reforms in this area. Before Vodiannikov was appointed to the judicial position, the media repeatedly voiced criticism of the lack of transparency and selective approach to the formation of the Constitutional Court. The new judge is one of the authors of articles in "Dzerkal Tyzhnia", and after the start of full-scale Russian aggression in Ukraine, his analytical materials on receiving reparations from the Russian Federation received wide coverage. In particular, he provided expert assessments on the mechanisms and procedures for holding Russia accountable, analyzing the issues of jurisdictional immunities and possible ways of compensating for damages. Combining many years of international experience, a deep understanding of the national legal system and a desire for reforms, Oleksandr Vodyannikov should become an important component of changes in the constitutional justice of Ukraine. His appointment gives hope for the restoration of the work of the Constitutional Court in a full-fledged mode and contributes to Ukraine's rapprochement with European standards of justice, ensuring the rule of law and legal certainty in the state.