Russian Supreme Court Publishes New Review on Sanctions-Related Disputes: KK&P Analysis for Global Arbitration Review
On 19 June 2026, the Supreme Court of Russia (the SCR) published Review of Court Practice No. 8/2026 On Russian Countersanctions and Sanctions-Related Disputes (the Review).
The Review summarises the SCR’s approach to a number of issues that have been at the centre of Russia-related litigation over the past several years and are of particular interest to foreign companies, financial institutions and DR practitioners.
The Review addresses, among other things:
- the exclusive jurisdiction of Russian courts and competence of foreign arbitration (paras 17–18);
- Russian court anti-suit injunctions based on Article 248.2 of the CPC (paras 15–16, 21);
- sanctions as force majeure applying to Russian defendants (Russian brokers and banks) (paras 13–14);
- recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in Russia and contradiction of Russian public policy (paras 19–20);
- the legal validity of transactions that are executed in violation of Russian countersanctions (paras 1–4, 9);
- assignment in violation of Russian countersanctions regulations (paras 5–7);
- compulsory licensing of a foreign entity’s intellectual property and other connected issues (paras 10–12).
The Review highlights which approaches developed by lower courts have now been expressly endorsed by the SCR and are therefore likely to be followed in future disputes.
At the same time, one of the most notable aspects of the Review is what it does not contain.
The SCR chose not to address its landmark decisions in the Citibank and JPMorgan cases, despite those judgments establishing several important positions potentially favourable to foreign defendants, including the absence of tort liability where a Russian claimant can obtain an unblocking licence, requirements for the liability of Russian subsidiaries for acts or omissions of foreign parent companies, and the mandatory involvement of the Central Bank of Russia in such proceedings.
The omission of these issues from the Review leaves open the possibility for further development of the Supreme Court’s positions set out in those decisions.
KK&P Trial Lawyers has prepared a detailed analysis of the Review, including its potential implications for foreign companies, financial institutions and participants in international disputes.
Read the full alert here: https://globalarbitrationreview.com/article/russian-supreme-court-reviews-judicial-practice-in-sanctions-disputes