British lawyer Jason McCue: "I want to be a pain in the ass for Prigozhin and Putin"

How to get proper justice and fair reparations for Ukraine and Ukrainians

article by VOLODYMYR KRAVCHENKO,

Observer of the international policy department of ZN.UA

British lawyer Jason McCue has been representing the interests of victims of terror for many years, helping them achieve justice and receive compensation for their sufferings. As a co-founder and senior partner of the law firm McCue Jury and Partners LLP, he played a leading role in court victories against organizations such as the "RIRA", Hamas, and the case against the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. Earlier this year, McCue Jury and Partners LLP successfully defended Bellingcat CEO Eliot Higgins in a lawsuit initiated by PMC "Wagner" owner Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Defending the interests of Ukrainians who suffered as a result of Russian aggression, on November 1, Jason McCue filed a lawsuit against PMC "Wagner" in the Supreme Court of London.

— "Mr. McCue, what is this suit that you have filed in the High Court of London?" Is it against the organization or against certain persons who represent PMC "Wagner"?

— This is a lawsuit from a group of Ukrainians who asked me to represent their interests in court.

We claim two things. Firstly: the "Wagner" group committed acts of terrorism against the Ukrainian population on the territory of Ukraine. Secondly: Putin entered into an illegal conspiracy with this PMC to commit acts of terrorism on the territory of Ukraine. As for the defendants in this case, it is currently Prigozhin on behalf of the Wagner group. In the future, we plan to add other defendants.

We are going to prove that PMC "Wagner" is a terrorist organization and is essentially a weapon that Putin uses to achieve his goals on the territory of Ukraine by terrorist methods. We are going to seek compensation for the people of Ukraine.

One of the lawsuits will be in London, the other in the USA. They are quite different, but their purpose is the same. The first case was started in London, because there are about 180,000 people in London - refugees from Ukraine, who are all potential plaintiffs.

Now, in accordance with the procedures that exist in the legal system of the United Kingdom, we await the defendants' move. If there is no response from the defendants within the period specified by law, then the court hearing begins.

I would like to note that six months ago, we began to cooperate with our fellow lawyers and academics in the legal case, as well as with the Supreme Court of Ukraine on what changes should be made to Ukrainian legislation in order for such a case to be initiated in Ukraine and later this judgment could be secured abroad.

I believe that I can help Ukrainians because I have experience in the fight against terrorism. I have spent the last 30 years fighting terrorism around the world. I began with cases against the Irish Republican Army. Then there were cases against the "Islamic State ", "Al-Qaeda ", "Hamas", "Hezbollah ", "Al-Nusra Front ", as well as Libya and Iran. I was threatened by Gaddafi. But when you're dealing with terrorists, the only right option is to ignore their threats.

And, finally, I want to be just a pain in the ass for Prigozhin and Putin.

— Does the High Court of London have jurisdiction to hear this case? The "Wagnerites" committed crimes against Ukrainians on the territory of Ukraine, not Great Britain...

— Yes, there is jurisdiction, because Ukrainians who left for Great Britain continue to suffer losses. Many of them have significant injuries and wounds due to the activities of the "Wagners". Some Ukrainians have post-traumatic stress disorder because of what is happening. And so they have grounds to file a lawsuit against this activity that forced them to leave.

We also anticipate a number of lawsuits against the "Wagners" in various countries where there are Ukrainian refugees.

— By what episodes will you prove that PMC "Wagner" committed acts of terrorism against the Ukrainian population?

— We will start with examples in Africa and Syria, and then we will logically reach Ukraine. That is, we will show the pattern of activity, the fact that they constantly use the same methods. After that, we will move on to concrete cases that confirm their war crimes, their crimes against humanity, and their deliberate acts of violence against the civilian population. The fact that the Wagner group sent a sledgehammer to the European Parliament is an illustrative example of terrorist activity, that is, intimidation.

Unfortunately, "Wagner" makes it easy for me because they are monsters.

I would like to emphasize that the filed lawsuit is a civil case. And it has certain advantages over a criminal case, because it has slightly different requirements for the evidence base.

The advantages of the civil justice campaign are that, firstly, it makes it possible to achieve really significant reparations payments for the plaintiffs, in this case for Ukrainians and the people of Ukraine. Secondly, within the framework of this campaign, it is determined that Russia's actions are illegal and terrorist. Thirdly, this whole process forces the defendants to focus not on their illegal activities, but on how they answer in court, how they keep their assets. Because a number of court cases are opened against them. That is, it is a strategic legal approach to fight and protect justice. In this case, the victims are Ukrainians.

— What is the amount of the claim?

—  Our legal team's assessment of the first case is currently between five and nine billion pounds. Cases in the US can reach much larger sums.

—  If the case is won, how will you seek to recover the money?

—  For the past six months, we have been painstakingly working on tracking the assets of the group of "Wagner" around the world. And, as soon as court judgments are issued in Great Britain and the USA, a network of lawyers cooperating with us will help us legalize these judgments in countries where the assets of group of "Wagner" have already been identified. There are actually many such countries. And one thing I'm not telling the media is where those resources are because we don't want to alert the group of "Wagner".

— As far as I understood, other Ukrainians with their claims can be added to the already existing group of plaintiffs?

— Yes you're right. We are currently working together with the government of Ukraine to involve as many people as possible in these cases. Now we are working with some institutions that are engaged in digitalization, so that the largest number of applications or lawsuits from the Ukrainian side can join the cases.

— How can those who do not live in Great Britain join this cause?

— If we are talking about citizens of Ukraine who evacuated to Great Britain at some stage and then returned to Ukraine, then they can join the case. And now we are working with the government of Ukraine to organize the process of submitting these applications in such a way as to reduce administrative work. Because when all Ukrainians who show a desire to join the mentioned case, start calling my company — and this is what needs to be done — then my phone line will simply collapse.

— What will be used to finance court costs?

— First, in connection with this case, we plan to start a fundraising campaign. We must be properly resourced to fight against the Russian military machine, which has considerable resources.

I met with a number of civil society leaders in Ukraine, and we already have significant offers of support. But I am sure that the world public will give enough support to this legal process in order to successfully complete it, because everyone understands how important it is.

— You said that you intend to file a lawsuit against PMC "Wagner" in the United States. Will the claim be identical to the one you filed in the UK?

- In fact, two cases have already been prepared, which we are ready to start in the USA. One against the group of "Wagner", the second against another legal entity. The reason I don't want to reveal their details now is because I don't want to forewarn who will be the defendants and who will be the plaintiffs in this case.

— In the courts of which countries do you still plan to file a lawsuit?

— Currently, I have lawyers in Israel who say that they have a case ready for this campaign. Lawyers in France say the same. There are lawyers in the Netherlands and in other countries. We want to start this process in order to prosecute elements of the Russian military machine around the world.

— You had a meeting with the head of military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov. What did you agree on?

— In addition to him, I also met in the president's office with Mr. Podolyak, and he testified to his full support and the president's support in this case.

Many components within the government of Ukraine could potentially help me in the case against the group of "Wagner", including by providing the evidence base. It's a normal thing, we do it all over the world: we send requests to government agencies that can help us put together and prepare our case. Basically, we can be helped by every person or institution that can provide relevant information that will be used in the case and is ready to share it. 

I have been involved in post-conflict settlement for quite a long time. It is obvious to me that this war will end with the victory of the Ukrainians. But what remains in question - will Ukraine and Ukrainians now receive proper justice and fairness in terms of reparations? There are two ways to achieve this.

The first is the path of international negotiations, the creation of a tribunal and a reparations commission, etc... My experience is that this path is too vulnerable to real politics. And at the end of such a process, people and private businesses receive only symbolic compensation for the damage caused.

The second way to achieve justice in receiving compensation is through legal campaigns like the one I'm currently running. There are two advantages here. First, it is real, not a symbolic damages award. Second, because it is a legal process, it is immune from real politics. Politicians cannot stop individual lawsuits being heard in UK or US courtrooms. But in order for it to work, we have to roll up our sleeves and work hard – because it's a very difficult thing – to wage such a struggle. But the victory is definitely ours!

Read this article in russian and Ukrainian.