Article 14 of the Constitution of Ukraine provides that land is the fundamental national wealth that is under special protection by the State. The right of property to land is guaranteed. This right is acquired and realized by citizens, legal entities and the State, exclusively in accordance with law.

Today, land lease is an important legal instrument to ensure market turnover of land plots. At the same time, the current stage of the land reform in Ukraine is marked by accelerated development of land-lease relations, given that lease is more easily available as compared to the possibility of acquiring property rights.

An analysis of law application practice demonstrates that today, a signed land hire (lease) contract is the most common reason generating the obligation to transfer a land plot for temporary use, and also the most effective form of its use in the environment of economy development.

The exclusive significance of lease relations is also emphasized by the adoption of the special Law of Ukraine “On Land Lease” which defines the specifics of legal regulation of the land lease relations.

In this context, particular importance is attached to case law of Ukrainian courts, particularly, the Supreme Court, with regard to resolution of disputes arising from lease relations, and also with regard to correct understanding and application of the provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On Land Lease”.

The purpose of the article is to study the case law of the Supreme court, including the Grand Chamber, the Economic Court of Cassation as part of the Supreme Court and the Civil Court of Cassation as part of the Supreme Court, with regard to application of the provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On Land Lease” in the context of the most topical issues which are brought before the court.

 The authors analyzed a number of decisions of the Supreme Court relating to application of the Law of Ukraine “On Land Lease”, marked out legal positions which are well-established and raise no doubts today, and also highlighted challenging issues of legal regulation of lease relations which require urgent solutions.

1. Kuzmenko N, Rishennia orhaniv mistsevoho samovriaduvannia v mekhanizmi pravovoho rehuliuvannia zemelnykh vidnosyn [Local Government Decisions in the Mechanism of Legal Regulation of Land Relations] (Alerta 2018) (in Ukrainian).

2. Svirskij B, Gosudarstvennoe stroitel’stvo i mestnoe samoupravlenie v Ukraine: ucheb. posob [State Building and Local Government in Ukraine] (Jespada 2004) (in Russian).

Journal articles

1. Kulynych P, ‘Pytannia pravovoi teorii ta praktyky orendy zemli v umovakh zavershennia zemelnoi reformy v Ukraini’ [‘Issues of Legal Theory and Practice of Land Lease in the Conditions of Completion of Land Reform in Ukraine’] (2018) 2 Chasopys Kyiv. un-tu prava 254–7 (in Ukrainian). 4. Romaniuk Ya ta Maistrenko L, ‘Deiaki aspekty pravovoho rehuliuvannia tsyvilnykh pravovidnosyn, pov’iazanykh iz derzhavnoiu reiestratsiieiu pravochyniv (na prykladi orendy zemli)’ [‘Some Aspects of the Legal Regulation of Civil Relations that are Related to the State Registration of Contracts (for Example, Contracts for the Land Lease)’] (2014) 2 Visnyk Verkhovnoho Sudu Ukrainy 162 (in Ukrainian).