Kristina Shapovalova is International Litigation Counsel at ETERNA LAW and a member of the Ukrainian National Bar Association. She has spent more than eight years in Dispute Resolution and authored many articles for Ukrainian and international publications. She was awarded the “Top 30 under 30 Lawyer” in 2021. Kristina is also a WITNESS certified instructor trained in providing evidence of war crimes.
“Ukraine will be rebuilt someday. There is no doubt in that. But it is crucial and imperative both for us and for the international community to hold those who are guilty accountable for the irreparable destruction. At this stage, there is no compensation mechanism developed specifically for damages caused by the war, but we are working on to defend our clients who have suffered war damages. ETERNA LAW’s International Litigation Practice has already gained positive experience in holding the Russian Federation civilly liable for the harm caused to Ukrainian business. Among other things, a team of advocates from our Practice succeeded in obtaining for an injured business entity one of the first Ukrainian judgments awarding damages caused by Russia’s armed aggression in Ukraine. I am confident that carving out a separate International War-Damages Compensation Practice will enable us to focus more attention on delivering compensation and justice to those who have suffered from the war and to provide highly qualified services in the market in order to handle disputes of this class,” says Oleh Beketov, Senior Partner and Head of International Litigation at ETERNA LAW.
Kristina Shapovalova comments:
“Setting up our International War-Damages Compensation Practice is a logical follow-up to the rights advocacy efforts and systemic advances made by ETERNA LAW since the full-scale invasion began. Delivering compensation to everyone who has suffered damages as a consequence of Russia’s criminal aggression and holding those who are guilty accountable for their crimes are integral elements of rebuilding Ukraine and justice in all its senses. It is worth fighting for. We keep helping victims by using the available legal tools as well as our experience and expertise, and we are actively working on developing new mechanisms to achieve this ambitious goal.”
