$6,000 for a status: how the Chernivtsi District Court produces fake divorces for exemption from military service

$6,000 for a status: how the Chernivtsi District Court produces fake divorces for exemption from military service

How to become a single father while the child’s mother is still alive? You can file a lawsuit with the Chernivtsi District Court. It is there that many court decisions on divorce are issued, after which children are often left in the custody of the father. This, in turn, can serve as a basis for deferment or exemption from military service, even if the divorce is, in fact, fictitious.

However, there are no guarantees of successfully pulling off this scheme, especially for military personnel. A military unit can intervene in your family matters and file an appeal with the appellate court. Journalists from hromadske have analyzed how the Chernivtsi District Court (and not only) churns out grounds for deferment in bulk and whether this issue can be resolved.

How to obtain the right to exemption from military service?

In May 2024, amendments were made to the mobilization law. A new provision was introduced — if a father, by court decision, independently raises and supports a child, this can serve as a basis for deferment or exemption from service.

To acquire the status of a single father, one must not be married. Additionally, the father must raise and support the child without the mother’s involvement. Documents confirming this must be submitted to the court, although the legislation does not provide a specific list of required documents.

At the same time, lawyers advise gathering as much evidence as possible: witness testimonies; data on the other parent crossing the border; an order from the child welfare service regarding guardianship actually performed by one parent; as well as confirmation that the other parent is in occupied territory or is wanted by the police.

Human creativity knows no bounds, so over the past year, the number of such lawsuits in courts has anomalously increased. Men file for divorce and request the court to establish that they independently raise their children.

Trends in how some courts make decisions point to probable fictitiousness. But more on that later.

Shall we play the lottery?

Serviceman Mykyta H. has been serving in the border brigade "Hart" since August 2022.

In March 2025, Mykyta and his wife Khrystyna went to a notary and certified an agreement that after the divorce, their son would stay with the father, and their daughter with the mother. They also agreed that there was no dispute over this arrangement.

A week later, Mykyta filed a divorce lawsuit with the Chernivtsi District Court. However, it seems the automated case assignment system determined that his case would not be heard by the "right" judge. The man failed to pay nearly 2,500 hryvnias in court fees, so the court did not consider his claim.

The next day, Mykyta submitted a new application… and again, something went wrong. The serviceman did not sign his claim, so the court rejected it.

Luck did not smile on him on the third attempt either. Mykyta then simply withdrew his divorce claim. The fourth application was rejected after he submitted a fifth one. Finally, the tenth attempt on May 30th was the last. The automated assignment system selected Judge Oleksandr Voytun.

Judge of Chernivtsi District Court Oleksandr Voytun Provided by hromadske

Mykyta and his wife did not appear at the hearing. However, the man provided written explanations — they got married in 2018, have been living separately since September 2024, family life did not work out, and he "considers preserving the marriage and reconciliation impossible."

The serviceman added that the daughter would stay with the mother, who plans to move abroad. The son would stay with the father. Therefore, both parents should be recognized as independently supporting and raising a child.

They also provided the court with a notarized agreement and written statements from two witnesses.

"The family has completely fallen apart and cannot be saved," decided Judge Voytun, granting the claim and dividing the children without even involving guardianship authorities.

Since Mykyta became a father independently raising and supporting his son, based on the article of the law "On Military Duty and Military Service," he submitted a report requesting discharge from military service.

Were the rights of the military unit violated?

"Our lawyers, after reviewing the court decision, saw an attempt by the serviceman to use family rights protection methods for the purpose of discharge from military service," says Ihor Lyzohub, spokesperson for the "Hart" brigade.

In particular, the court decision indicated that the mother and father were still registered at the same address, and guardianship authorities were not involved. Additionally, the unit’s lawyers questioned how Mykyta could independently raise a child if, from the time of the court decision to the submission of the discharge report, he continued serving and did not return home.

Thus, the unit prepared an appeal and refused to grant the serviceman’s report until the court’s decision. They specifically challenged the fact that Mykyta independently raises and supports his son without the mother’s involvement.

The Chernivtsi Appellate Court believes that Voytun made a decision affecting the serviceman’s discharge from service. Therefore, the military unit has the right to be a party in this case and appeal the previous court ruling.

The panel of judges noted that Mykyta did not prove that Khrystyna fails to fulfill her duties regarding their son, nor did he prove the opposite — that he does not fulfill his duties regarding their daughter. Moreover, the first-instance court did not involve guardianship authorities.

Thus, the appellate court revoked Mykyta’s status as a single father, along with the grounds for discharge from service.

Mykyta is not the only one. Out of 16 decisions made by Voytun in December, 15 are under appeal.

Meanwhile, civilian Andriy U. was luckier. In October 2024, Judge Ihor Ishchenko of the Chernivtsi District Court granted his divorce claim and left the child with him.

Judge of Chernivtsi District Court Ihor Ishchenko Provided by hromadske

In court, Andriy explained that preserving the marriage was impossible, and his wife wanted to move abroad and start a new family. They signed an agreement stating they had no objections if the child stayed with the father.

Based on this, the court decided to dissolve the marriage and "leave the child to live with and be independently raised and supported by the father." On this basis, he has a deferment from mobilization at least until February 2026, as evident from the case materials.

Why is this a scheme?

Let’s start with Judge Oleksandr Voytun of the Chernivtsi District Court. Journalists calculated that in 2025, he divorced approximately 180 couples, and in 158 cases, the children were left with the father.

For comparison, in 2024, his total divorce decisions amounted to over 80, and in 2023, there were 18.

Moreover, a pattern can be observed in the cases Voytun handles. Before going to court, couples notarize an agreement stating there is no dispute over the children living with the father and provide written witness statements. If there are two children, they are split — one child per parent. Incidentally, this also eliminates the issue of alimony.

In one case, a father openly stated that the court decision would allow him to "leave the country with the child after the end of martial law" without the mother’s documented consent.

Similarly, Voytun’s colleague, Ihor Ishchenko, also churns out divorces. In 2025, he made decisions in over 180 claims, in 2024 — 166, and in 2023 — 49.

Voytun last granted a divorce claim and left children with the father in early January 2026, while Ishchenko continued making such decisions into February.

On February 12, one more single father was added to the list. Everything remains consistent: first, an agreement is signed between the parents, then a lawsuit is filed in court. No guardianship authorities or additional evidence are provided as to why the mother cannot raise the children.

According to our calculations, in 2025, up to 1,700 court decisions may have been made in Ukraine in lawsuits to dissolve marriages and leave children with the father; of these, approximately 760 (over 40%) were in the Chernivtsi District Court.

In October, local media reported on searches conducted by the State Bureau of Investigation at the premises of this court. According to journalist Ivan Sprynskyi, it concerned a scheme of fictitious divorces, which allegedly cost between 6,000 and 9,000 dollars.

Journalists have sent inquiries and are awaiting a response. Most likely, there is no suspicion yet.

In 2024, under the same scheme, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) exposed judges of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi City-District Court. They charged 3,500 dollars for such decisions. In December, the High Council of Justice dismissed a judge who issued such decisions in bulk.

Additionally, in September 2025, the High Council of Justice initiated disciplinary proceedings against three judges of the Shevchenkivskyi District Court in Poltava. In particular, Judge Volodymyr Buhriy made a decision to determine the child’s residence with the father. Shortly after, the man left the country with the child.

What does the Supreme Court say about this?

The Supreme Court has already made a ruling in a similar case, where a lawsuit to establish the fact of independently raising children was deemed fictitious.

For instance, Oleksandr K. obtained single-father status through a court decision in Odesa and also sought to be discharged from the army on the grounds of supporting a minor child.

The military unit appealed this decision. The appellate court revoked Oleksandr’s status, which was ultimately confirmed by the Supreme Court in January 2025.

The cassation court referred to the fact that the first-instance court did not assess whether the mother was truly unable to care for the child. Additionally, the emotional relationship between the child and each parent was not established, nor was the child’s opinion considered.

The guardianship and custody authority did not participate, and no conclusions regarding the family situation were provided to the court.

"Given this, the lawsuit was filed with the aim of artificially creating conditions and circumstances that could serve as grounds for discharge from military service," the Supreme Court concluded.

The Supreme Court also emphasized that the fact of sole upbringing cannot simply be formalized by parental agreement.

Therefore, when deciding on the determination of a child’s place of residence, courts must consider objective and available evidence in the case, including an assessment of living conditions, characteristics of the child’s psycho-emotional state, parental behavior toward the child, and conclusions from the guardianship and custody authority.

Moreover, the Supreme Court recognized that the rights of the military unit were violated in this case, and therefore, it had the right to appeal.

For example, citing this decision, the Novoselytsia District Court of Chernivtsi region in June 2025 refused to grant single-father status to a man who also came to court with a notarized agreement.

Author: Denys Bulavin

Source: hromadske