Abramovich’s Billionaire Ally Takes on UK in Sanctions Challenge

A billionaire and “close” partner of oligarch Roman Abramovich has become the first person to challenge the UK’s Russian sanctions regime in a London court.

Lawyers for Eugene Shvidler, who has long been associated with Abramovich, filed the claim last month, saying that the UK made “significant errors” in its assessment of Shvidler’s relationship with the former owner of Chelsea Football Club. Shvidler, a British citizen who saw his private jets impounded by the UK, says he’s suffered “serious hardships” since being designated last March, and sought to push back against a government minister who dubbed him a Putin crony.

Shvidler’s case will be the first to be scrutinized by British judges since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The billionaire was also one of the first people to be hit with an asset freeze in a rush of measures in the early days of the conflict and wants the court to quash the “unlawful” order, according to a legal document, filed a year to the day of start of the invasion.

The case is set to be heard within 28 days, with Shvidler’s lawyers asking for an “expedited hearing.” In the UK, sanctioned individuals can only bring a court claim after asking for an internal administrative review of the decision making. 

Sourse: Bloomberg