From Ukraine to Örebro: Yurii Orzikh to train Ukrainian lawyers in EU law

When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the researcher and notary Yurii Orzikh at National University Odesa Law Academy reached out to colleagues from other European universities he had come to know over the years. Eleonor Kristoffersson, professor of law at Örebro University, seized the opportunity to invite him to participate in a project – and thanks to funding from the KK Foundation, Yurii Orzikh was able to move to Örebro and start working at Örebro University.

He now lives in Örebro with his wife and two children – and since November, he holds a senior lectureship at the university. Thanks to language studies and frequent use of various AI tools, he is already teaching tax law in Swedish, despite having lived in Sweden for only three years.

“In fact, it’s easier for me to understand and discuss tax law in Swedish than to make small talk about everyday life. But there are actually similarities between Ukrainian and Swedish – for example, the word for flavour, smak, means the same thing in Ukrainian and sounds almost identical, or the word for council, råd, which also has phonetic similarities with the Ukrainian word rada,” he explains.

Social codes and lagom – a key to Swedish culture

Language and legal terminology are one thing. Yurii Orzikh finds Swedish culture to have been a bigger challenge. Accepting that things sometimes need to run their course has required adjustment.

“I want things to move fast, here and now – but I’ve had to get used to ‘give it time’. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make an effort or work hard in Sweden, but you also need to have patience,” he says with a smile.

The concept of Jantelagen, a social pressure not to stick out, which is traditionally common in Sweden, and the word lagom, signifying things being not too little, not too much, but just right, have also been very helpful in approaching Swedish culture.

“Here, teamwork and collective unity matter more than individual achievement – and even individual successes are the result of joint effort. That was hard to understand at first, but it’s something I really appreciate.”

Funding for training project for Ukrainian lawyers

Yurii Orzikh maintains ties with his former university in Ukraine. He has assisted Örebro University in donating furniture and office supplies to Ukrainian universities affected by the war. Now he has also been granted SEK 3 million from the Swedish Institute to launch a new training project for Ukrainian lawyers.

Six million Ukrainians have left the country and emigrated to various European countries. The large-scale migration from Ukraine to EU countries means that the number of cross-border legal cases is increasing, for example concerning inheritance, marriage, divorce and parental responsibility.

“There is a clear knowledge gap because Ukrainian lawyers and judges previously did not need special training in EU law, nor do they have access to EU legislation in Ukrainian. There is now a growing need for Ukrainian lawyers to be able to read, understand and apply EU law,” says Yurii Orzikh.

To be shared with other countries

The project means that Yurii Orzikh, together with the other project partners, will develop a training programme on EU legislation and translate all material into Ukrainian. They will train professionals who can then pass on the knowledge within the Ukrainian legal system. This effort is particularly important now that Ukraine has applied for EU membership.

“I look forward to seeing how the programme can also be used in other countries that are candidates for EU membership. I am very grateful to my team here in Örebro – not least Eleonor and Magnus Kristoffersson and Grants Office, who have made this possible,” he says.

How do you see the future?

“I dream of the war ending – that is my greatest wish. Until then, I want to continue doing what I can for Ukraine. Even if the fighting were to stop now, many years of rebuilding await – both for infrastructure and for people. My grandfather was a pilot during the Second World War and later a lawyer. The day he came home to Odesa after the war became a symbol of both relief and pain. I believe that day will come for us too: victory day in the war, but also grief and trauma that will carry on for generations,” says Yurii Orzikh.