The Kyiv Metropolis of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) has filed a lawsuit against the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, seeking to have the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) declared unlawfully established and dissolved.

The legal action was announced by UOC attorney Archpriest Nikita Chekman, who said the lawsuit challenges the government resolutions that created the agency and granted it authority to formulate and implement state policy on religious affairs.

According to the Kyiv Metropolis, the Cabinet of Ministers unlawfully delegated powers to DESS that, under Ukrainian law, may only be exercised by ministries. The lawsuit argues that the government's decisions violate both the Constitution of Ukraine and the Law on Central Executive Bodies.

Chekman said the legal challenge is directly linked to DESS's actions against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The agency conducted an official review into the alleged affiliation of the Kyiv Metropolis with the Russian Orthodox Church, issued directives based on its findings, and subsequently filed a separate lawsuit seeking to terminate the legal status of the Kyiv Metropolis and transfer its property to the state.

In its latest filing, the Kyiv Metropolis asks the Kyiv District Administrative Court to invalidate the government resolutions establishing DESS and order the Cabinet of Ministers to dissolve the agency on the grounds that it was created in violation of the law.

The lawsuit marks the latest stage in an ongoing legal dispute between the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the state religious affairs agency. In May, Ukraine's Cassation Administrative Court ruled in favor of the Kyiv Metropolis in a procedural appeal, overturning a lower court's decision to separate the Church's counterclaim in the liquidation case. Earlier, in April, the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal ruled that actions taken by DESS head Viktor Yelenskyi were unlawful and annulled an order approving a religious expert examination of the UOC's charter. The Church's legal department said the ruling rendered the examination legally invalid.

The legal conflict follows legislation that came into force in the summer of 2024 allowing authorities to ban religious organizations found to have ties to the Russian Orthodox Church. After completing its review in 2025, DESS concluded that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was affiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church, prompting the agency to seek the dissolution of the Kyiv Metropolis and the transfer of its assets to state ownership. The UOC responded by filing a counterclaim challenging the legality of that decision.

The Ukrainian government has maintained that the legislation is intended to address national security concerns during the country's ongoing conflict with Russia, while the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has denied the allegations of institutional affiliation and continues to contest the government's actions in court.