Sustainable Case Law as a Prerequisite for the Right to a Fair Trial – The Ukrainian Experience

<p>The article deals with challenges to establishing a sustainable case law by the Supreme Court of Ukraine in criminal cases. The authors highlight aspects of the definition of ‘legal certainty’ and the peculiarities of its application in the law enforcement practice both of the Court of Justice of the European Union and of the Supreme Court of Ukraine. Based on the analysis of numerous cases of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, the authors also identify its key issues: the hierarchy of the judgments of the Supreme Court, the identification of an exceptional legal issue and the determination of the retroactive application of the Supreme Court's legal opinion. As a result, the authors conclude that there is an urgent need to improve criminal procedural legislation to ensure strict compliance with the conventional principle of legal certainty and the right to a fair trial. </p>