Question: Which court should file a claim to establish the fact of death of a participant in the special military operation?
Russia tightens secrecy over missing soldiers' death declarations
Answered by Yulia Zhiryakova, chief specialist at the State Legal Bureau:
The jurisdiction for cases involving the declaration of missing servicemembers as deceased in the special military operation zone has changed.
Until December 1, 2025, such cases were heard by district and city courts at the place of residence of the interested party.
Under Part 1, Article 5 of Russian Federation Law No. 5485-1 of July 21, 1993, On State Secrets, cases concerning the declaration of servicemembers as deceased have been classified as state secrets. Information about those killed in the special military operation is subject to state protection as military-related intelligence.
Civil cases involving state secrets are heard as first-instance proceedings by regional courts and courts of equivalent status (Clause 1, Part 1, Article 26 of the Russian Civil Procedure Code).
Consequently, all claims from interested parties seeking to have servicemembers declared deceased will now be reviewed by regional courts.
Pursuant to Article 45 of the Russian Civil Code and Federal Law No. 120-FZ of April 14, 2023, On Amendments to the Federal Law "On the Enactment of Part One of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation," servicemembers missing under circumstances that threatened death or provided grounds to presume their demise from a specific accident may be declared deceased six months after the onset of such circumstances.
