Apartment dispute under the "Dolina scheme": The Supreme Court of Tatarstan issued a final verdict.

      The case, which is already being referred to as the Tatarstan version of the "Dolina scheme," has received a long-awaited resolution. The Supreme Court of Tatarstan has put an end to one of the most high-profile cases in recent years. In the dispute between a pensioner who claimed she sold her apartment under the influence of telephone scammers and a bona fide buyer who was left without housing and money after the transaction. This story lasted almost two years. Today, the judicial panel issued a final decision. Who will get the apartment? A report by TNV correspondent Ramil Shaidullin.

      Before the start of the hearing, there was tense anticipation. On one side of the court corridor was Vladislav Gainullin. He has been trying for almost two years to get back the apartment for which he paid nearly 7 million rubles. All this time he has been living in rented accommodation, continues to pay off a loan, and even pays taxes for the apartment he cannot access. On the other side were representatives of the pensioner, Daniya Dautova. She claimed after the transaction that she acted under the influence of telephone scammers. Before the process began, both sides refused to comment. Ahead was possibly a decisive hearing.

      This story is already being referred to as the Kazan echo of the so-called "Dolina scheme." First, scammers convince the owner to sell the apartment. Then, realizing what has happened, the former owner demands through the court that the transaction be declared invalid. As a result, the bona fide buyer risks being left without housing and funds. This is exactly what happened to Vladislav Gainullin. In the fall of 2024, he bought an apartment on Victory Avenue. The transaction was conducted officially — through a real estate agency, a bank, and the Rosreestr. The seller received the money, but then transferred it to the scammers.

      After a criminal case was initiated, the prosecutor approached the court, stating that the woman did not understand the significance of her actions. In the first instance court, the contract was declared invalid, and the apartment was returned to the seller. The buyer was not refunded anything, just as it happened in the most notorious case in the country. "If there were representatives of banks at the transaction, well, if there were different parties present at the transaction: realtor, buyer, if everything was calm, good, then the transaction should remain in force. One cannot simply manipulate the court, invent various tricks, one cannot file under three civil articles at once," said plaintiff Vladislav Gainullin.

      In January, after the high-profile "Dolina case," a review was released by the Supreme Court of Russia. It clearly stated: misunderstanding regarding the motives of the transaction is not grounds for declaring the contract invalid. This same position was taken today by the defense of Vladislav Gainullin. "A distinguished educator of the Russian Federation with many years of experience, a highly educated lady Dautova, undoubtedly understood psychologically and mentally — her will and consciousness were absolutely intact," said Gainullin's representative.

      One of the key questions of the process became a repeated judicial psychological-psychiatric examination. It was previously appointed by the Supreme Court of Tatarstan. Experts concluded: the woman indeed became a victim of telephone scammers, however, there was no mental state that deprived her of the ability to understand the consequences of the transaction. The seller voluntarily entered into a contract with the real estate agency, underwent a medical examination before the transaction, received a certificate of capacity, and after the sale, she herself deregistered.

      But representatives of Daniya Dautova insisted that the experts needed to be summoned to court and questioned additionally — after all, the examination took place in 2026, while the events occurred in 2024. The court ruled: the apartment remains with Vladislav Gainullin. Daniya Dautova is recognized as having lost the right to use the housing and is subject to eviction. "To recognize Dautova D.G. as having lost the right to use the residential premises. To recover in favor of Gainullin Vladislav Askhadovich 6,000 rubles for reimbursement of state duty expenses, 13,200 rubles for reimbursement of expenses for the judicial examination," said the judge.

      Immediately after the announcement of the decision — emotions that had been building up for almost two years. Vladislav Gainullin embraced his fiancée. She had been by his side all this time. "I bought the apartment to start a family. And since I couldn't move in, my wedding kept getting postponed. I have a wedding in September, I would really like to move in before that time, so that there wouldn't be a situation like with Dolina, when she didn't move out for months and the bailiffs came," shared Vladislav Gainullin. "I think this is probably the biggest challenge in our lives, and we went through it before the wedding. After this, nothing scares us, it seems to me," said Vladislav Gainullin's fiancée, Aliya Khaireullina.

      Thus, the Supreme Court of Tatarstan effectively ruled that the motive of the transaction, even such, is not a sufficient basis to deprive the rights of a bona fide buyer. And although the pensioner has three more months to appeal this decision in cassation, today Vladislav Gainullin finally breathed easier. His right to housing has been restored.