The grandmother of a soldier killed in the Donetsk region won a 15 million hryvnia lawsuit against the Ministry of Defense

In Lviv, the grandmother of a deceased Ukrainian soldier successfully sued to secure a one-time financial payment of 15 million hryvnias. The Lviv District Administrative Court overturned the Ministry of Defense commission’s decision to deny the payment and ordered the ministry to transfer the funds to her.

As stated in the court ruling, published in October 2026, the lawsuit was filed by the grandmother of a senior soldier who was killed in July 2022 during fighting in the Bakhmut district of Donetsk Oblast. The soldier was an orphan, and his grandmother had been caring for him since 1997.

The soldier’s grandmother appealed to the Stryi City and District Court in Lviv Oblast and obtained the necessary ruling, but the commission subsequently denied her the benefit due to her grandson’s death. The Lviv Oblast resident considers the decision unlawful and has appealed to the court.

A representative of the defendant stated that the commission denied the benefit because the court ruling confirmed only the fact that they lived together as a family, but did not establish the fact of maintaining a joint household, the existence of mutual rights and obligations, or that she was dependent on the deceased in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On Pension Provision for Persons Discharged from Military Service and Certain Other Persons.”

The plaintiff’s attorney emphasized that without confirmation of cohabitation, the court would not have had the legal authority to establish the fact of living specifically “as a single family.”

The case was heard by Judge Natalia Sydor, who reviewed all the evidence and arguments presented by the parties.

“The grandson and his grandmother lived together and shared a common household; the grandmother cared for her grandson after the death of his parents until he reached the age of majority, and later, due to her advanced age, the deceased grandson—who lived with her—began caring for his grandmother, managing the household, buying groceries and medicine, paying utility bills, and ensuring the well-being of the household. “Thus, this ruling confirms the fact that the plaintiff is a family member of the deceased servicemember,” the court’s decision states.

The judge fully granted the claim of the grandmother of the deceased soldier and ordered the Ministry of Defense to award and pay her a one-time benefit. The decision may still be appealed.

The decision was published in the court registry in October 2026.

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The family of a fallen soldier successfully sued for a payment of 15 million hryvnias.