Serhiy Holovaty

Serhiy Holovaty was born on May 29, 1954 in Odesa, in a military servant's family.

After graduating from high school, he worked as a compiler of the finished product of the Smilian bakery (1971-1972).

In 1977 he graduated with distinction from the Faculty of International Relations and International Law of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, the specialty "international law".

In 1977–1980 he was a post-graduate student at the Department of History and Law of Asia, Africa and Latin America of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.

1980-1987 – juniour researcher, 1987-1990 – seniour researcher of the Institute of Social and Economic Problems of Foreign Countries of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

1983-1986 – Professor of the Department of International Law and Foreign Legislation of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.

2011-2013 - Professor of the Department of Theory of Law at the Faculty of Law of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.

Mr. Holovaty also made research work abroad: in 2001 he was a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law (Heidelberg, Germany); in 2002-2003 – seniour researcher at Yale Law School under the Fulbright Exchange Programme (New Haven, USA); in 2013–2014 –researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Criminal Law (Freiburg, Germany).

He was a People's Deputy of Ukraine of the six convocations (1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, and 2007).

1992-1996 - member of the Commission for drafting a new constitution of Ukraine.

2008–2010 - member of the National Constitutional Council.

1995-1997, 2005-2006 – Minister of Justice of Ukraine.

Other positions: Head of the Ukrainian Commission on Legal Terminology (1995-2000), Chairman of the Commission for Drafting a New Civil Code (1995-1997), Chairman of the Working Group on drafting the new Administrative Code (1997), Chairman of the National Commission for the Strengthening of Democracy and the Establishment of the Rule of Law (2005-2007, 2010-2015), member of the High Council of Justice (2005–2006), member of the National Security and Defence Council (1996-1997, 2006).

Since 1995, Mr. Holovaty was a member of the Ukrainian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), where he held the following positions: PACE Vice President (2006-2009), Chairman of the Committee on Rules of Procedure and Immunities (2002-2005), Chairman of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights (2005-2006), Chairman of the Committee on Honouring Obligations and Commitments by Members States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee, 2008-2010), Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights (since January 2010). In 2002-2010 he was a member of the PACE Bureau.

During 1995-2001 and 2005-2009 he was a member of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) on behalf of Ukraine, serving as a Vice President and a Member of the Bureau of the Commission (1997-2001). From 2010 to 2013 – representative of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in the Venice Commission.

2015 - 2017 – Advisor to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (on constitutional issues).

2016-2017 – substitute member of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission).

2017 – 2021 - member of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission).

2017 – Rapporteur of the Venice Commission on the draft Law on amending the Constitution of Moldova initiated by the President Dodon of Moldova.

Since December 2017 – Vice-President of the Sub-Commission on the Rule of Law of the Venice Commission.

April 2019 – December 2021 – member of the Enlarged Bureau of the Venice Commission, President of the Sub-Commission on the Rule of Law of the Venice Commission.

On April 15, 2021 he was re-appointed as the member of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commissions) on behalf of Ukraine.

Since December 11, 2021 – member of the Bureau of the Venice Commission.

He was involved as the Venice Commission’s expert to the constitutional process (consulting of relevant Constitutional commissions during elaboration of new constitutional following the “Arab spring” events) in Libya – after the fall of Quaddafi’s regime (2021; in Egypt – after the fall of Mubarak’s regime (2013); in Tunisia – after the fall of Ben Ali’s regime (2014).

He served on leading positions in public legal organisations at the national and international levels: President of the Association of Ukrainian Lawyers (1990-1995), President of the World Congress of Ukrainian Lawyers (1992-1994). Since 1992 – Founding President of the All-Ukrainian Charitable Foundation "Ukrainian Legal Foundation".

On February 27, 2018, by a Decree of the President of Ukraine pursuant to the results of the competition, he was appointed a Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine. He took the oath of a Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine on March 2, 2018.

Doctor of Law, Professor, Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine. Distinguished Lawyer of Ukraine.

Awarded the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, V degree, the Diploma of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the "Pro Merito" Medal of the Venice Commission, the "Pro Merito" medal of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe with the simultaneous awarding of the title "Honourary Partner of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe".

Areas of research activity: international public law, theory of law, constitutional law, human rights. He has published more than 200 research works, the main of which are two: "The Rule of Law" (monograph, in three books, 2006), "On Human Rights. Lectures" (2016).

September 17, 2019 – September 18, 2022 - Deputy Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine.

Since December 29, 2020 – Acting Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine. 

The powers of a Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine were terminated upon attainment of the age of seventy pursuant to Article 149¹.1.2 of the Constitution of Ukraine, in accordance with Articles 20.2, 31.2, 33.2, 33.7 of the Law of Ukraine “On the Constitutional Court of Ukraine”, and § 6 of the Rules of Procedure of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine.