A series of Russian oligarchs opened a wave of lawsuits against the EU because of sanctions

At least 20 of Russia’s most powerful tycoons are filing lawsuits against the European Union to bust their assets and protest their visa ban. Among them is Roman Abramovich, the former owner of Chelsea football club, who was sanctioned at the end of March for allegedly benefiting from his close relationship with President Vladimir Putin.

According to Politico, a list of filings with the EU’s second highest court, the European General Court, shows a series of names that overlap with a list of individuals sanctioned for which they have been sanctioned. The EU Council has given earlier. There are also anonymous lawsuits that may involve more Russian oligarchs.

Among the well-known names are Fridman, Aven and Usmanov, who filed complaints with the court between late April and late May.

The court’s list currently only mentions the names of individuals without specific claims, but similar names also appear on the EU Council’s list of sanctioned individuals.

The EU has sanctioned Mikhail Fridman, the founder of Russian investment company Alfa Group. They also froze assets and imposed a travel ban on Petr Aven, Fridman’s former business partner, whom the EU considers “one of its closest oligarchs” [Tổng thống] Vladimir Putin.” Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov is also affected by the sanctions.

Fridman and Aven’s company and representatives were not immediately available for comment. A spokesman for the billionaire Usmanov declined to comment “on legal proceedings related to sanctions”.

Not only individuals, a series of Russian organizations are also complaining about the EU’s sanctions against them. Broadcaster RT has filed a complaint against the station’s suspension, which the European Court of Inquiry has upheld, but another hearing has been scheduled for June 10.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund filed a complaint after the EU banned investment in the fund in March. The investment organization VEB.RF, chaired by Putin, has also launched legal action. However, the companies did not respond to Politico’s request for comment.

Although the European Court of First Instance does not comment on individual cases, spokesman Jacques Zammit said it would be a long time before the verdicts were announced. “A case can take months, certainly, even about a year for a case from start to finish,” he said. Many stitching cases also last several weeks or months.

So far, the EU has imposed sanctions on more than 1,000 individuals.

Mikhail Friedman is among the Russian oligarchs who have filed a complaint with the EU Court of First Instance. Photo: AFP/Getty Images

Between 2008 and 2015, the EU lost about two-thirds of its legal challenges to sanctions it has imposed, according to a study requested by the European Parliament.

But even if the Russian oligarchs win the case, they may not get their money back. Andreas Geiger, an expert at lobbying firm Alber & Geiger, said it was “futile” to sue the European Council even if the court ruled in the complainant’s favor.

That’s because the Council makes a new list of sanctions each year, which – legally speaking – builds on the previous list. “These people will stay on the sanctions list – even if they win all the cases, case after case, year after year – as long as the Council wants, because they always bring a new decisions, even if the court rules their decision to be illegal,” said Mr.

Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, an ally of Russia, has been filing complaints for years. His assets were frozen in 2014 for alleged embezzlement of public funds shortly before he was deposed by protests. In June last year, the court sided with Yanukovich, but the EU still said it would keep the sanctions in place. Two new lawsuits signed by Yanukovych were filed in court last month.

The only way to get off the sanctions list, says Geiger, is to engage in protracted political lobbying.

But the EU may also have an answer to that. The bloc’s latest package of sanctions, which took effect on June 3, has made it illegal for European companies to lobby for Russians or the Russian government.

According to Thu Hang