LEGAL REGULATION OF ADMINISTRATIVE WORKFLOW IN UKRAINE DURING THE WAR: CHALLENGES AND WAYS OF OPTIMIZATION

Abstract

Introduction. The current stage of development of the Ukrainian statehood is characterized by unprecedented challenges caused by full-scale armed aggression, which has necessitated a radical restructuring of traditional managerial hierarchies and legal approaches to document management. Under martial law, the traditional paper-based model of administrative workflow has demonstrated its critical vulnerability to physical threats, jeopardizing not only the efficiency of decision-making but also the preservation of archives of national significance and the evidence base for international legal proceedings. The digitalization of the management space has ceased to be a matter of prestige or mere technological modernization, gaining the status of an existential factor for the resilience of public authority and national security in the information sphere. Ukraine’s legal field has found itself in a situation where rapid adaptation to crisis conditions must be combined with the fulfillment of strategic European integration obligations regarding the unification of electronic identification standards and data exchange in accordance with European Union norms.

Purpose. The primary focus of this scientific research is to conduct a comprehensive theoretical and applied analysis of the transformational shifts that have occurred in the domestic legal field regarding the regulation of documentation processes under the influence of war factors. The study focuses on identifying systemic legal barriers hindering the full digitalization of management and substantiating the optimal «Paperless 2.0» functional model, which would be based on the priority of structured data, the security of decentralized server solutions, and the continuity of personnel and military administration in conditions of external aggression.

Materials and Methods. The methodological framework of the study is built on the principles of consistency and dialectical logic, which allowed for the consideration of document flow as a dynamic component of public administration. The source base of the work consists of key legislative acts of Ukraine in the field of electronic trust services, organizational orders of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and promising draft laws for 2026 that propose a state-of-the-art classification of electronic information resources. By applying the comparative legal method, the effectiveness of various regional models for implementing electronic interaction systems was compared, and the forecasting method allowed for the determination of the economic and managerial potential of a complete transition from paper originals.

Results. In the course of the study, it was proven that the adaptation of legal regulation ensured the functional stability of the state apparatus even in areas of direct hostilities and in de-occupied territories. It was established that the key tool for overcoming bureaucratic resistance was the full legal recognition of the qualified electronic signature and the launch of specialized «e-Archive» modules, which allow for the legitimate accumulation of National Archival Fund documents in a digital format. An analysis of the specifics of military and labor law under martial law showed that simplifying remote communication procedures and implementing secure networks, such as «Dnipro,» made it possible to level the risks of physical loss of personnel and operational data. The significance of reinforced control over the disposal of primary financial documentation was also highlighted, transforming the process of paper destruction into a tool for the legal protection of Ukraine’s future reparation claims. The advantages of Draft Law No. 14414-1, which proposes a revolutionary recognition of the legal force of scanned copies and structured documents, allowing the state to save significant resources on the maintenance of archives, were investigated.

Perspectives. Further scientific developments should focus on deepening the integration processes of the domestic digital space into the EU single market, in particular through the detailed adaptation of electronic seal standards and methods for automated data integrity verification. A strategically important direction is the study of the possibilities of implementing artificial intelligence algorithms for monitoring the security of strategic cloud storage and processing large arrays of «born digital» documents. The issue of unifying the rules for the long-term storage of digital heritage also remains relevant, requiring the development of national standards capable of guaranteeing the authenticity of information over decades, regardless of future technological changes and software updates.