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Vasil Kisil & Partners Successful for MIIT in Payment Dispute

Vasil Kisil & Partners Successful for MIIT in Payment Dispute

Ukraine
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Vasil Kisil & Partners has successfully represented the MIIT telecommunication operator in a dispute related to the payment for telecommunication services (IP telephony).

MIIT provides Internet, telephony, analog and digital interactive television, collocation, and mail domain support services.

In this dispute, according to VKP, "all three levels of courts held that the telecommunication company's claims relating to the payment for services were reasonable and thus recovered from the subscriber its debt, including penalties." In doing so, according to a summary provided by the firm, "the courts did not accept the subscriber's arguments ... that it neither ordered nor consumed international telecommunication services to such an extent (international calls were made from the phone numbers assigned to such subscriber). Likewise, the courts dismissed an [argument] that there was unauthorized tampering with the equipment, since it is a subscriber’s responsibility to protect logins and passwords. Accordingly, it was the subscriber who bore all risks related to restricted information being used by third parties and all loss related thereto which could be inflicted either to it (as subscriber), the operator, or other persons. Thus,  unauthorized tampering with equipment is not a reason to release the subscriber from payment for the telecommunication services provided to it."

"Telecom fraud (fraud involving the misuse of telecommunication services by tampering with telecommunication equipment) is quite a widespread phenomenon in the modern technology world," said Vasil Kisil & Partners Counsel Oleg Kachmar. "Subscribers usually refuse to pay bills resulting from unauthorized tampering with their telecommunication equipment. However, the court practice in similar cases in Ukraine shows that the subscriber is obliged to pay for the services, though he or she is not prevented from recovering the damage caused by person guilty in unauthorized tampering."

The VKP team consisted of Partner Alexander Borodkin, Counsel Oleg Kachmar, and Associate Yuriy Kolos.