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NU
March 14, 2023

Arzinger successfully defended the interests of Kronospan

Arzinger has successfully defended the interests of Kronospan in challenging an environmental impact assessment (EIA) conclusion. The conclusion was issued to the client for the construction of the largest chipboard and OSB panel plant in Ukraine in Rivne region. However, an NGO filed a lawsuit against the client challenging the legality of the EIA conclusion.

 

The work consisted of three court disputes:

  1. in the first dispute, on 20 January this year, the Supreme Court dismissed the NGO's cassation appeal and upheld the decision of the court of appeal on dismissing the claim;
  2. in the second dispute, on 31 January this year, the Eighth Administrative Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal of another NGO and upheld the decision of the trial court on dismissing the claim;
  3. in the third dispute, on 1 March this year, the Supreme Court dismissed the cassation appeal of the interested party and upheld the decisions of the trial and appellate courts on dismissing the claim.

 

The value of the client's investments in the construction of the plant as of the date of the court rulings is estimated at almost EUR 400 million.

 

Owing to the developed and effectively implemented defence strategy, the courts in all three cases upheld the arguments of Arzinger's attorneys regarding the legality of the challenged EIA conclusion, the company's compliance with the established procedure for its conduct, no negative impact from the planned activities on the boundaries of the regulatory protection zone, etc.

The Supreme Court upheld the key legal positions developed by Arzinger's attorneys. It is noteworthy that such legal conclusions will be applied by the courts in many more similar cases on challenging EIA (environmental impact assessment) conclusions.

The project team included attorney-at-law Nataliia Anokhina, Associate and attorney-at-law Andrii Salo, Junior Associates Viktoriia Kravchenko and Mariana Sytar, led by partner Iaroslav Cheker and former partner Markiyan Malskyy.

 

For reference: Kronospan is one of the world's largest manufacturers of wood panels and related products, with plants all over Europe and the world (more than 40 divisions). It has been operating in Ukraine for almost 20 years.

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