The Belgrade Court of Appeals has officially rejected an appeal by Milan Radoičić regarding a lower court’s dismissal of his high-profile defamation lawsuit against Kosovo Serb politician Rada Trajković.
Trajković announced the legal victory on July 13, 2026, revealing that the court shot down the challenge filed on Radoičić’s behalf by his prominent attorney, Goran Petronijević. The lawsuit, originally filed in 2019, sought 5 million dinars (approximately $46,000 USD) in damages for alleged injuries to Radoičić’s “honor and reputation.”
Background: The Oliver Ivanović Murder & Political Pressures
The multi-year legal battle stems from public statements made by Trajković following the January 2018 assassination of Oliver Ivanović, a moderate Kosovo Serb politician gunned down in North Mitrovica.
Trajković consistently linked Radoičić—the former vice-president of the Belgrade-backed Srpska Lista party—to the assassination plot and accused him of running an iron-fisted, criminalized influence network across northern Kosovo.
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ CHRONOLOGY OF THE LEGAL FEUD │
├───────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ YEAR │ EVENT / LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS │
├───────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 2018 (Jan) │ Kosovo Serb leader Oliver Ivanović is assassinated. │
│ 2019 │ Radoičić sues Trajković for 5 million dinars over public│
│ │ statements linking him to the murder investigation. │
│ 2021 │ Belgrade Higher Court rejects the lawsuit, ruling │
│ │ Radoičić must tolerate a higher threshold of criticism. │
│ 2026 (July) │ Belgrade Appeals Court upholds the dismissal, legally │
│ │ terminating Radoičić's defamation claims. │
└───────────────────┴─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
When the Belgrade Higher Court threw out Radoičić’s initial lawsuit in 2021, the judge ruled that Trajković’s commentary addressed matters of profound public interest. As a prominent public figure, Radoičić was legally required to tolerate a much higher threshold of public scrutiny and media criticism. That ruling also ordered Radoičić to pay Trajković 325,000 dinars in court fees.
“Everything is Slowly Coming to Light”
Celebrating the appellate decision, Trajković didn’t hold back against Radoičić’s legal counsel, Petronijević, who has frequently been accused by opposition circles of serving as a specialized legal fixer for the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) to intimidate independent dissidents.
“Another piece of good news: The Court of Appeals in Belgrade has finally rejected Milan Radoičić’s appeal… Everything is slowly coming to light. History will judge.” — Rada Trajković, via social media
State-Sanctioned Border Retaliation
While the judiciary ultimately ruled in her favor, Trajković emphasizes that her willingness to testify in the Ivanović case and speak out against northern Kosovo’s parallel structures has made her a primary target for state harassment.
Over the years, she has faced:
- Border Detentions: Being held for hours without explanation by Serbian border police at the Merdare crossing and Belgrade’s Nikola Tesla Airport.
- Political Isolation: Routine public demonization by state-backed media networks in Belgrade.
- Security Threats: Continuous physical and psychological intimidation targeted at her and her close associates.
While the independent investigative portal KoSSev noted that Radoičić and Petronijević have yet to issue a public response to the ruling, regional analysts view the appellate decision as a rare legal shield for independent political voices operating in the highly volatile security landscape of northern Kosovo.
