HBO trademarks seized in Ukraine due to non-payment of compensation for series Chernobyl

HBO trademarks in Ukraine have been seized as part of enforcement proceedings due to non-fulfillment of a court decision to pay UAH 500,000 to Liudmyla Ihnatenko.

This was reported by the Mamunya IP law firm.

The decision to collect compensation was made by the Supreme Court in November 2025, finally recognizing the violation of Ihnatenko's right to use her name.

The lawsuit was filed in 2020 after Ihnatenko contacted lawyers. She stated that she did not consent to the use of her name and the name of her late husband Vasyl Ihnatenko in the series, and also pointed out the presence of scenes that, according to her, do not correspond to reality and may form a false impression about her.

This is the miniseries Chernobyl, which was released in 2019 and recreates the events of the Chornobyl accident, in particular through the story of the Ihnatenko family.

According to the Civil Code of Ukraine, the use of real people's names in non-documentary works without their consent is prohibited.

Mamunya IP noted that as of now, HBO has not complied with the court decision and has not paid the awarded amount. In this regard, private executor Andrii Avtorhov has seized the company's trademarks registered in Ukraine. In case of further non-payment, they may be put up for sale.

As a reminder, the wife of the deceased firefighter-liquidator of the Chornobyl accident, Liudmyla Ihnatenko, who was the prototype of the main character in the HBO film Chernobyl, stated that she did not give the channel permission to tell her story.