Court Case Profiles

Records

Alisher Usmanov

Uzbek-born Russian businessman whose holding company is USM Holdings, former shareholder of Arsenal FC, and elected president of the International Fencing Federation (FIE).

PendingLatest source dated 2026-09-25Last reviewed 2026-10-26

What did the court decide?

Usmanov v Council

On appeal
Court
General Court of the European Union
Case number
T-237/22
Filed
2022-04-29
Parties
Alisher Usmanov v Council of the European Union

Claims. Annulment of his February 2022 inclusion on the EU sanctions lists; suspension of the measures also sought.

Decision. Action dismissed on 7 February 2024 (EU:T:2024:56). Appeal to the Court of Justice lodged as Case C-274/24 P; outcome not found.[1, 2, 3]

Usmanov v Council

Decided
Court
General Court of the European Union
Case number
T-1117/23
Filed
2023
Parties
Alisher Usmanov v Council of the European Union

Claims. Annulment of the September 2023, March 2024 and September 2024 acts maintaining his listing.

Decision. Dismissed on 3 September 2025; Council had a sufficiently solid factual basis to treat him as a leading businessperson operating in Russia (USM, Metalloinvest, MegaFon).[4, 5]

Usmanov v Council

Pending
Court
General Court of the European Union
Case number
T-327/25
Filed
2025-05-26
Parties
Alisher Usmanov v Council of the European Union

Claims. Annulment of Council Decision (CFSP) 2025/528 and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/527 of 14 March 2025 (alternatively May 2025 acts).

Decision. No decision found as of 26 October 2026; his EU listing was deleted on 22 September 2026.[6, 7]

Challenge to 2022 searches of Usmanov-linked properties

Decided
Court
Landgericht Frankfurt am Main (Germany)
Parties
Alisher Usmanov v German prosecuting authorities

Claims. Lawfulness of 2022 searches in a money laundering investigation.

Decision. Searches held unlawful (reported May 2023); on 26 October 2023 the court ordered return of the seized property.[8, 9, 10]

Usmanov v Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

Decided
Court
Landgericht Hamburg (Hamburg Regional Court, Germany)
Parties
Alisher Usmanov v Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

Claims. Injunction against statements in an April 2023 FAZ article, including claims attributed to Alexei Navalny.

Decision. Decision of 23 January 2026 barring FAZ from repeating several statements from its April 2023 article (per court documents reported by Reuters).[11, 12]

Lürssen claim concerning EU sanctions status of yacht Dilbar

Decided
Court
Verwaltungsgericht Frankfurt am Main (Germany)
Filed
2025
Parties
Lürssen shipyard v Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA)

Claims. Declaration that EU sanctions no longer apply to the yacht Dilbar.

Decision. Judgment of 11 June 2026 (reported 29-30 June 2026) ordering BAFA to determine that Lürssen need not treat the yacht as a frozen economic resource; the court found authorities had not established a connection between Usmanov and The Sister Trust. Not final and appealable; whether an appeal was filed was not found.[13, 14]

Sources

  1. Metals billionaire Usmanov files appeal over EU Russia sanctionsAmerican Journal of Transportation (Bloomberg), 2022, secondary source
  2. Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov loses legal case while seeking to lift EU sanctionsUkrainska Pravda, 2024-02-07, secondary source
  3. Case C-274/24 P: Appeal brought by Alisher Usmanov against the judgment of the General Court in Case T-237/22 (OJ C/2024/3450)Official Journal copy via inforlex.pl, 2024-06-10, primary source
  4. CJEU Rulings on Restrictive EU Measures against Russia (May-October 2025)eucrim, 2025, secondary source
  5. Usmanov v Council (T-1117/23), judgment of the General Court of 3 September 2025 (text)lagen.nu (EUR-Lex CELEX 62023TJ1117), 2025-09-03, primary source
  6. Case T-327/25: Action brought on 26 May 2025 – Usmanov v CouncilOfficial Journal of the EU (EUR-Lex), 2025, primary source
  7. Council Decision (CFSP) 2026/2161 of 22 September 2026 amending Decision 2014/145/CFSPEUR-Lex (Official Journal of the EU), 2026-09-22, primary source
  8. Usmanov property search ruled unlawful by German courtGlobal Sanctions (europeansanctions.com), 2023-05-30, secondary source
  9. German court declares searches of Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov's villas and superyacht illegal (citing Der Spiegel)Novaya Gazeta Europe, 2023-05-26, secondary source
  10. Germany orders return of seized property after 'unlawful' searches in billionaire Usmanov investigationbne IntelliNews, 2023-11-01, secondary source
  11. German court restricts media claims about Russian-Uzbek billionaire Alisher Usmanov (citing Reuters)The Times of Central Asia, 2026-02-02, secondary source
  12. Usmanov wins case against Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (Russian)Meduza, 2026-01-28, secondary source
  13. German court rules EU sanctions no longer apply to superyacht linked to UsmanovThe Moscow Times, 2026-06-30, secondary source
  14. Gericht bestätigt: Yacht Dilbar gehört nicht Alischer Usmanowfinews.ch, 2026-06-29, secondary source

Change history

  • 2026-10-26 Record published.

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