diff --git a/idea/idea-jvm/src/org/jetbrains/kotlin/idea/debugger/DebuggerClassNameProvider.kt b/idea/idea-jvm/src/org/jetbrains/kotlin/idea/debugger/DebuggerClassNameProvider.kt
index ef1a571ad9c..513115982ad 100644
--- a/idea/idea-jvm/src/org/jetbrains/kotlin/idea/debugger/DebuggerClassNameProvider.kt
+++ b/idea/idea-jvm/src/org/jetbrains/kotlin/idea/debugger/DebuggerClassNameProvider.kt
@@ -59,7 +59,11 @@ class DebuggerClassNameProvider(
                 KtFunctionLiteral::class.java,
                 KtAnonymousInitializer::class.java)
 
-        internal fun getRelevantElement(element: PsiElement): PsiElement? {
+        internal fun getRelevantElement(element: PsiElement?): PsiElement? {
+            if (element == null) {
+                return null
+            }
+
             for (elementType in CLASS_ELEMENT_TYPES) {
                 if (elementType.isInstance(element)) {
                     return element