Both legal advice and psychological support: a lawyer helped a soldier return to his sick mother

Publication date: August 19, 2022

Maryna Kuprykova, a lawyer from the NGO Cherkasy Human Rights Center, received a question from Andrii in June of this year while on duty in the online chatbox of the Legal Development Network*…

The man said that he was conscripted in February 2022. Although he lives with his mother, who needs constant care due to her health. Given such family circumstances, the question was whether he was eligible for exemption from conscription. And how should he act in such a situation?

The lawyer explained to Andrii that according to subparagraph “g” of paragraph 2, part 4 of Art. 26 of the Law of Ukraine “On Military Duty”, his family circumstances are indeed grounds for dismissal from military service under martial law at the serviceman’s own will.

The first thing the lawyer advised to start with is to write a report to the commander of the military unit. After receiving a report from a soldier on early release to the reserve due to family circumstances, the commander of the military unit is obliged to send a request for checking his family status to the relevant territorial recruitment and social support center at the place of residence of the family of the serviceman within three days.

The online consultation continued by phone, as both the lawyer and Andrii had many clarifying questions. Immediately after the consultation, Andrii did as the lawyer advised.

However, a few days later, he called and said that his report was not accepted and that it would be impossible to resign. To which Maryna Kuprykova recommended him to submit the report not personally to the commander, but in a general manner, indicating the entry number of the document. Andrii did exactly that.

Then they had to wait. However, neither after a week nor after ten days the documents did not arrive at the district territorial center of recruitment and social support. The lawyer assured Andrii that during the period of martial law, the post office quickly shuts down, and recommended requesting information on when the documents were sent. After that, the process really accelerated.

• «Further, following the current legislation, the director of the regional territorial center of staffing and social support, having received documents from the commander of the military unit on early release into the reserve, appoints the commission. This commission checks the marital status of the serviceman’s relatives within ten days. Based on the results of such an inspection, an inspection report is drawn up, which is sent for consideration to the director of the regional territorial center of recruitment and social support», comments the lawyer.

And time dragged on again… The man almost despaired of a positive result. However, almost every day the lawyer assured him that the Law was on his side and he just had to wait.

• «Then, in accordance with the procedure, the director of the regional territorial center of staffing and social support is obliged to review the documents on the early release of a serviceman from military service within a three-day period. If there are legal grounds, he must send them to the commander of the military unit where the serviceman is serving», clarifies Maryna Kuprykova.

And so, exactly two months after the day of the first appeal to the online chat, Andrii called the lawyer and informed that he had finally been released from military service. He believed in justice again!

• «The serviceman eventually managed to terminate the contract. He returned home to his sick mother. We talked with him for more than two months. I don’t even know who I was more in this situation – a lawyer or a psychologist», admits Maryna Kuprykova.

She modestly adds that she didn’t do anything special. However, the call that the lawyer received at the end of this story and Andrii’s written thanks to the Legal Development Network testify to how important such comprehensive support was for a person.

And she modestly notes that she didn’t do anything special.

«Indeed, it is difficult to say whether Maryna worked as a lawyer or as a psychologist since my psychological state at that time (those two months) was at an incredibly low level! I am very grateful to Maryna for her work and support! It was thanks to her confidence during our conversations that my ambitions and anger at lawlessness and the leveling of laws returned to me! It was thanks to her professionalism that I was clearly aware of the possible consequences of my next step and had the confidence that one of these steps would still be victorious! Everything turned out just that way!
It is with such people that I want to build an independent, democratic, legal state! It’s a pity, there are not many such people! Thank you for being you!», – Andrii wrote after the publication of this article on our website.

And he added that the story of his struggle for law and justice is far from over. Therefore, the probability of his repeated appeal for advice or help is quite high.

*Using this link, you can get a free legal consultation from LDN lawyers.

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