Sanctions regime put to legal test in UK as russian oligarch Shvidler seeks release of assets

The lawfulness of the UK sanctions regime set up after russia’s full invasion in Ukraine faces its biggest legal test on Thursday when a soviet-era oligarch and ally of Roman Abramovich seeks a court order to release his assets including two private jets.

The case being brought by Eugene Shvidler, a billionaire oil businessman, follows similar challenges by oligarchs now entering the courts in Europe where a separate but similar sanction regime operates.

Shvidler’s request for the release of his assets is the first case to reach the UK high court involving an individual. A number of other cases are waiting to be heard if he succeeds.

The UK imposed sanctions on Shvidler in March last year. The Foreign Office said Shvidler had obtained financial benefit from his relationship with the Russian regime.

Shvidler has never been a russian national and is now a UK-US citizen. At the time of his sanctioning, the Foreign Office put his net worth at £1.2bn. He built his fortune from the oil firm Sibneft after the privatization of russian industrial assets during the final era of the soviet union, and he is said to have a close connection to Abramovich. Until the sanctions hit, the two held stakes in the London-registered steelmaker Evraz.

Source: The Guardian