The business ombudsman helped restore the rights of 70 Nizhny Novgorod entrepreneurs.

      October 22, 2025 14:46 Economy NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — Polina Zubova

      The Ombudsman for the Protection of Entrepreneurs' Rights in the Nizhny Novgorod Region, Pavel Solodky, summed up the results of his work for the nine months of 2025 at a press conference at the "Mayak Academy," a correspondent for NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" reports.

      According to Solodky, 140 complaints from entrepreneurs were received during the reporting period, 11% more than for the same period last year. Sixteen of them concern criminal cases. One hundred and six complaints were recorded in administrative matters. A total of 133 appeals were considered, of which in 70 cases the entrepreneurs' rights were fully or partially restored.

      The ombudsman noted that appeals come from both micro-businesses and large enterprises. One direction of work has become participation in court proceedings: if last year the ombudsman's office participated in 39 cases, this year it has already taken part in 50.

      Solodky paid special attention to the criminal prosecution of entrepreneurs. He stressed that the initiation of a criminal case is often perceived by businesses as a form of pressure.

      "The ombudsman's office has to step in because sometimes where the rights of entrepreneurs need to be protected, the initiation of a criminal case is refused. One such example was a striking case last year. Our entrepreneur was swindled out of 250 million rubles. He sent [the money] abroad, and it was not possible to find who the fraudster was. And, of course, to prove that he was not the one who withdrew the funds, he had to apply to the Interior Ministry, and, unfortunately, the request to open a case was refused. We took his side and managed to secure the opening, then the closing of the case, and he was acquitted: he turned out to be the injured party; it was not his malicious intent," Solodky said.

      Among other pressing problems are complaints about power supply companies, missed deadlines for connections to electrical networks, and difficulties with product labeling. According to Solodky, micro-businesses selling knitwear and hosiery suffer particularly badly from the new requirements, as they do not have the necessary resources to comply with all the rules.

      The number of complaints on land and property issues has halved — to seven. At the same time, the number of appeals in the transport sector and in the field of natural resource use has increased.

      The business ombudsman paid special attention to the issue of fines. Nizhny Novgorod entrepreneurs often do not know that they can contact the ombudsman before any inspection begins — whether by control and supervisory bodies or by law enforcement agencies. According to Solodky, if an entrepreneur reports an inspection in advance, the ombudsman's office can monitor its legality, check coordination with the prosecutor's office, compliance with deadlines and other procedural requirements.

      As a result of such preventive work, a positive outcome is achieved in 86% of cases related to administrative fines. In some situations fines are canceled, replaced with a warning, or significantly reduced by court decision.

      In addition, Solodky commented on the Justice Ministry's draft law on the "advocacy monopoly." According to him, the initiative will increase the burden on lawyers and may entail bureaucracy and corruption risks.

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