Fedor Plevako: Robin Hood of the Russian Bar. Lawyer Plevako, judicial speeches! Lawyer Plevako biography

Fedor Plevako was born on April 25, 1842. His parents were not married, so he was considered an illegitimate child. The young man was distinguished by his remarkable abilities; mathematics came easiest to him. Fyodor sat over books all day long and easily entered the Commercial school in Moscow. Alas, it was not possible to finish his studies - Plevako and his brother were expelled from the educational institution as illegitimate. The father used all his connections to get his children accepted into the 1st Moscow Gymnasium. Then Fedor became a law student at Moscow University. The teachers noted the young man’s lively mind and predicted a brilliant future for him.

The young lawyer is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after in Moscow. They listened to him with bated breath - Plevako, with his amazing oratorical gift, could convince anyone.

“His speech is even, soft, sincere.”

He “adapted” the tone of his speech to suit his listeners, appealing to both reason and feelings. Precise images, conciseness and logical harmony - on the court platform Fyodor Nikiforovich had no equal. However, he never prepared his speeches in advance. The audience was captivated by witty remarks, always said to the point. “The high-cheekbone, angular face of the Kalmyk type with widely spaced eyes, with unruly strands of long black hair could be called ugly if it were not illuminated inner beauty, visible now in the general animated expression, now in a kind, lion-like smile, now in the fire and sparkle of speaking eyes.

The audience was captivated by witty remarks, always said to the point

His movements were uneven and sometimes awkward; The lawyer's tailcoat sat awkwardly on him, and his lisping voice seemed to run counter to his calling as an orator. But in this voice there were notes of such strength and passion that it captured the listener and conquered him,” wrote judge Anatoly Koni.

Postage stamp of Russia

This is how Anton Pavlovich Chekhov described the famous lawyer: “Plevako comes up to the music stand, looks at the jury for half a minute and begins to speak. His speech is even, soft, sincere. Figurative expressions, good thoughts and many other beauties. The diction penetrates into the very soul, fire looks out of the eyes. No matter how much Plevako talks, you can always listen to him without getting bored...”

The lawyer participated in high-profile case about the Morozov strike (1885). It was one of the largest strikes in history Russian Empire. About 8,000 thousand people became its participants. The authorities sent 3 battalions of soldiers and 500 Cossacks to suppress the strike. As a result, 33 people were in the dock, but they were acquitted by the jury. In his speeches, Plevako appealed to a feeling of compassion for workers exhausted by heavy physical labor. He has appeared as a defense attorney in labor riot cases on several occasions.

Plevako, with his amazing oratorical gift, could convince anyone

Another brilliant speech by Fyodor Nikiforovich is connected with the revolt of the peasants of one of the villages of the Tula province against the neighboring landowner, Count Bobrinsky. The riot was brutally suppressed, 34 “inciters” were brought to justice. Plevako not only defended the defendants, but also paid them all legal expenses. He proved the difficult situation of the Tula peasants with specific figures. According to him, they lived “a hundred times harder than pre-reform slavery.” "Poverty is hopeless,<…>lawlessness, shameless exploitation, leading everyone and everything to ruin - these are the instigators!” the lawyer said.

Once Plevako defended a saleswoman who violated the trade rule and closed her shop 20 minutes later than required by law. Fyodor Nikiforovich was 10 minutes late for the meeting. The prosecutor asked to find the defendant guilty. “The defendant was actually 20 minutes late. But, gentlemen of the jury, she is an old woman, illiterate, and doesn’t know much about watches. You and I are literate and intelligent people. How are things going with your watches? When the wall clock shows 20 minutes, Mr. Chairman has 15 minutes, and Mr. Prosecutor’s clock has 25 minutes. Of course, Mr. Prosecutor has the most reliable watch. So my watch was 20 minutes slow, so I was 20 minutes late. And I always considered my watch to be very accurate, because I have a gold, Moser watch,” said Plevako. After his speech, the saleswoman was acquitted.

Abbess Mitrofania

Fyodor Nikiforovich also defended Abbess Mitrofania; she was accused of appropriating someone else's property. This case was widely covered in the press. The court decided to deprive Mitrofania of her property and exile her to the Yenisei province, but her intercessors achieved a reduced sentence of deportation to Stavropol. The outstanding lawyer died on January 5, 1909 in Moscow.

Fyodor Nikiforovich Plevako (04/25/1842 - 01/5/1909) is a famous lawyer and outstanding speaker, about whom there are legends. He was the illegitimate son of the court councilor Vasily Ivanovich Plevak and the serf Ekaterina Stepanova. The patronymic Nikiforovich was taken from the name of the godfather of his older brother. After graduating from university, Fyodor added the letter “o” to his father’s surname Plevak, and called himself with an emphasis on this letter: Plevako.
F.N. Plevako had two sons (from different wives), whose names were the same - Sergei Fedorovich. Later, both Sergei Fedorovich Plevako became lawyers and practiced in Moscow, which often caused confusion.
Plevako owned an apartment building on Novinsky Boulevard, and this house was called the Plevako House - and is still called that way.

PLEVAKO'S MOST BRIGHTEST PERFORMANCES:

I took off my shoes!
Plevako defended a man whom a prostitute accused of rape and is trying to get a significant amount from him in court for the injury he caused. Facts of the case: the plaintiff claims that the defendant lured her to a hotel room and raped her there. The man declares that everything was by good agreement. The last word for Plevako.
“Gentlemen of the jury,” he declares. “If you sentence my client to a fine, then I ask you to deduct from this amount the cost of washing the sheets that the plaintiff soiled with her shoes.”
The prostitute jumps up and shouts: “It’s not true! I took off my shoes!!!”
There is laughter in the hall. The defendant is acquitted.

15 years of unfair reproach.
Once Plevako was leading a case regarding the murder of his woman by a man. Plevako came to the trial as usual, calm and confident of success, and without any papers or cheat sheets. And so, when it was the turn of the defense, Plevako stood up and said:

The noise in the hall began to subside. Spit again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
There was dead silence in the hall. Lawyer again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
There was a slight rustle in the hall, but the speech did not begin. Again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
Here the dissatisfied roar of the people, who had been waiting for the long-awaited spectacle, echoed in the hall. And Plevako again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
At this point the audience exploded with indignation, perceiving everything as a mockery of the respectable audience. And from the podium again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
Something unimaginable began. The hall roared along with the judge, prosecutor and assessors. And finally Plevako raised his hand, calling on the people to calm down.
- Well, gentlemen, you couldn’t stand even 15 minutes of my experiment.
What was it like for this unfortunate man to listen to 15 years of unfair reproaches and the irritated nagging of his grumpy woman over every insignificant trifle?!
The audience froze, then burst into delighted applause. The man was acquitted.

Absolution of sins.
One day he defended an elderly priest. By all appearances, the defendant could not count on the favor of the jury. The prosecutor convincingly described the depth of the fall of the clergyman, mired in sins. Finally, Plevako rose from his place. His speech was brief: “Gentlemen of the jury! The matter is clear. The prosecutor is absolutely right in everything. The defendant committed all these crimes and confessed to them. What is there to argue about? But I draw your attention to this. A man sits in front of you who has absolved you of your sins in confession for thirty years. Now he is waiting from you: will you forgive him one of his sins?” There is no need to clarify that the priest was acquitted.

30 kopecks.
The court is considering the case of an old woman, a hereditary honorary citizen, who stole a tin teapot worth 30 kopecks. The prosecutor, knowing that Plevako would defend her, decided to cut the ground from under his feet, and he himself depicted to the jury hard life the client who forced her to take such a step. The prosecutor even emphasized that the criminal evokes pity, not indignation. But, gentlemen, private property is sacred, the world order is based on this principle, so if you justify this grandmother, then logically you must justify the revolutionaries too. The jury nodded their heads in agreement, and then Plevako began his speech. He said: “Russia has had to endure many troubles, many trials over more than a thousand years of existence. The Pechenegs tormented her, the Polovtsians, the Tatars, the Poles. Twelve tongues attacked her and took Moscow. Russia endured everything, overcame everything, and only grew stronger and stronger from the trials. But now... The old lady stole an old teapot worth 30 kopecks. Russia, of course, cannot stand this; it will perish irrevocably..."

The Omen.
One day, Plevako, speaking in a provincial district court, agreed with the bell ringer of the local church that he would ring the bell for mass with special precision. The famous lawyer’s speech lasted several hours, and at the end he exclaimed: If my client is innocent, the Lord will give a sign about it! And then the bells rang. The jurors crossed themselves. The meeting lasted several minutes, and the foreman announced a not guilty verdict.

Fedor Nikiforovich Plevako(April 13 (25), 1842, Troitsk - December 23, 1908 (January 5, 1909), Moscow) - lawyer, lawyer, judicial speaker, actual state councilor.

Biography

According to some sources, F.N. Plevako was the son of a Polish nobleman and a Kalmyk woman from the Orenburg Kalmyk Cossacks. Father is court councilor Vasily Ivanovich Plevak, mother is Kalmyk Ekaterina Stepanova. The parents were not in an official church marriage, so their two children - Fedor and Dormidont - were considered illegitimate. There were four children in the family, but two died as infants. The patronymic Nikiforovich was taken from the name Nikifor, the godfather of his older brother. Later, Fyodor entered the university with his father’s surname Plevak, and after graduating from the university he added the letter “o” to it, and called himself with an emphasis on this letter: Plevako.

The Plevako family moved to Moscow in the summer of 1851. In the fall, the brothers were sent to the Commercial School on Ostozhenka. The brothers studied well, Fyodor especially became famous for his mathematical abilities. By the end of the first year of study, the brothers’ names were included on the “golden board” of the school. And six months later, Fedor and Dormidont were expelled as illegitimate. In the fall of 1853, thanks to their father's long efforts, Fedor and Dormidont were admitted to the 1st Moscow Gymnasium on Prechistenka - immediately into the 3rd grade. By the way, in the same year Pyotr Kropotkin entered the gymnasium and also entered the third grade. Many Russian figures who later became famous studied at the same school.

Graduated from the Faculty of Law of Moscow University. He was a candidate for judicial positions in Moscow. In 1870, Plevako entered the class of sworn attorneys of the district of the Moscow judicial chamber, which improved his financial situation. He acquired ownership of the house at 35 Bolshoy Afanasyevsky Lane (the house was demolished in 1993. See photo of the house). He soon became known as one of the best lawyers in Moscow, often not only helping the poor for free, but sometimes paying for unforeseen expenses of his poor clients.

Plevako's legal practice took place in Moscow, which left its mark on him. And the ringing of bells in Moscow churches, and the religious mood of the Moscow population, and the eventful past of Moscow, and its current customs found a response in Plevako’s court speeches. They are full of texts Holy Scripture and references to the teachings of the Holy Fathers. Nature has endowed Plevako with a wonderful gift of speech.

There was no more unique speaker in Russia. First judicial speeches Plevako immediately discovered his enormous oratorical talent. In the trial of Colonel Kostrubo-Koritsky, heard in the Ryazan district court (1871), Plevako’s opponent was attorney-at-law Prince A.I. Urusov, whose passionate speech excited the audience. Plevako had to erase the unfavorable impression for the defendant. He countered the harsh attacks with reasoned objections, a calm tone and a strict analysis of the evidence. Plevako’s oratorical talent was reflected in all its brilliance and original power in the case of Abbess Mitrofania, who was accused in the Moscow District Court (1874) of forgery, fraud and misappropriation of other people’s property. In this process, Plevako acted as a civil plaintiff, denouncing hypocrisy, ambition, and criminal inclinations under the monastic robe. Also noteworthy is Plevako’s speech on the case heard in the same court in 1880 of a 19-year-old girl, Kachka, who was accused of murdering student Bairoshevsky, with whom she was in a love affair.

Plevako often spoke out in cases of factory riots and in his speeches in defense of workers accused of resisting the authorities, rioting and destruction of factory property, aroused a feeling of compassion for unfortunate people, “exhausted by physical labor, with spiritual forces frozen from inaction, in contrast to us , the darlings of fate, brought up from the cradle in the concept of goodness and in complete prosperity.” In his court speeches, Plevako avoided excesses, polemicized with tact, demanding from his opponents “equality in struggle and battle with equal weapons.” Being an improvising speaker, relying on the power of inspiration, Plevako delivered, along with magnificent speeches, relatively weak ones. Sometimes in the same trial one of his speeches was strong, the other was weak (for example, in the Meranville case). In his youth, Plevako was engaged in scientific works: in 1874 he translated into Russian and published Pukhta’s course on Roman civil law. He was his assistant after 1894 famous singer L. V. Sobinov. According to his political views, he belonged to the “Union of October 17th”.

F.N. Plevako is our fellow countryman.

In the entire history of the Russian legal profession, there has not been a more popular person in it than F.N. Plevako. Both specialists, the legal elite, and ordinary people valued him above all lawyers as a “great orator,” “genius of speech,” “senior hero,” and even “metropolitan of the legal profession.” His very name became a household name as a synonym for a top-class lawyer: “I’ll find another “Gobber,” they said and wrote without any irony.” Letters to him were addressed as follows: “Moscow. Novinsky Boulevard, own house. To the main defender of Plevaka." Or simply: “Moscow. Fyodor Nikiforovich."

Fyodor Nikiforovich was born on April 25 (13 old style) 1842 in Troitsk Orenburg province(now Chelyabinsk region) in the family of a member of the Troitsk customs, court councilor Vasily Ivanovich Plevak.

At the age of six, Fedor was already freely reading the fairy tales of A. S. Pushkin, the poems of M. Yu. Lermontov, the fables of I. A. Krylov, and at the age of nine he began to show interest in the “History of the Russian State” by N. M. Karamzin. The father went on vacation to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan every year and brought new books to his sons. The children received firsthome education, from the age of seven Fedor began attending a parish school, and from 8 to 9 years old he studied at a district school. For academic success he was appointed class auditor.

Having retired in June 1851, V.I. Plevak decided to move to Moscow to continue his sons’ studies. On June 19, having said goodbye to Troitsk, the whole family set off and a month later arrived in Belokamennaya.

In Moscow, young Plevako continues his education at the gymnasium located on Prechistenka, and immediately enters the third grade. After graduating from the gymnasium with a gold medal, Fedor enters the Faculty of Law of Moscow State University.

By that time, Fyodor Nikiforovich’s father had died. For the first three years of the university, F. Plevako was listed as a volunteer student and only in his senior years began to study full-time. Many researchers attribute this to the need to financially support an impoverished family by earning money through tutoring and translations. It was then that Fedor translated the book of the German lawyer G. F. Pukhta, “A Course in Roman Civil Law.” Later, having already become famous lawyer, he published the translation at his own expense, accompanying it with numerous commentaries.

In 1864, F. N. Plevako graduated from the university and, having received a candidate of law degree, began looking for work. At this time, the main provisions of the judicial reform of 1864 were being approved. Later, Fyodor Nikiforovich recalled: “My comrades were from the sphere that suffered lawlessness on their shoulders. These were commoners or young people who became acquainted with science as “subjects” of the young barchuks, who had surpassed them in mastering the course of science. We, students, still had some idea of ​​the principles that the Judicial Reform carried; at the university, professors demonstrated examples of Western European legal proceedings in sample trials and drew attention to the main provisions of theof the upcoming Judicial Reform." For six months Plevako worked for public principles, engaged in drawing up documents for the newly formed institution, in the office of the chairman of the Moscow District Court E.E. Lyuminarsky,. The latter advised the capable employee to go to work at the bar.

Judicial reform, perhaps the most progressive and consistent of the initiatives of Alexander II, proclaimed the principles of universal class, openness and competitiveness of the parties. The formation of these principles in the judicial process required the creation of a new special institution - the legal profession (sworn attorneys). Plevako was one of the first to sign up as an assistant (for independent work you had to be over 25 years old and have at least 5 years of legal experience) to attorney M.I. Dobrokhotov. Here he proved himself in criminal trials as a gifted lawyer and on September 19, 1870, he was accepted as a sworn attorney for the district of the Moscow Court Chamber. From that time on, his brilliant ascent to the heights of lawyer fame began.

F. N. Plevako was one of those lawyers who began developing the foundations of judicial rhetoric in Russia. He made many speeches in the courtroom, which later became public knowledge and were passed on from mouth to mouth. The harsh attacks of their opponents on trials the lawyer contrasted reasonable objections, a calm tone and a strict analysis of the evidence.

In their courts in his speeches F. Plevako touched upon acute social issues. For example, his participation in the defense of a group of “Luthorian” peasants (1880), Sevsky peasants (1905), participation in the case of the strike of factory workers of the S. Morozov Partnership, who rebelled against inhumane exploitation (1886), was a civic feat at that time. At the trials in the case of factory riots in defense of workers accused of resisting the authorities, rioting and destruction of factory property, Plevako awakened in his listeners compassion for people “exhausted by physical labor, with spiritual forces frozen from inaction, in contrast to us, the darlings of fate, brought up from the cradle in the concept of goodness and complete prosperity.”

The sign is recognized Due to the merits of F.N. Plevako received the rank of full state councilor (IV class, corresponding to the rank of major general in the table of ranks), hereditary nobility, and was awarded an audience with the tsar. Increased fame and fees strengthened his financial position. Like other attorneys at law, he had a staff of assistants. Plevako purchased a two-story mansion on Novinsky Boulevard. The decoration of the house was the library. He was fond of books on history, law, philosophy and constantly took them with him on trips. Fyodor Nikiforovich was known for not abandoning the court cases of peasants, which he conducted, as a rule, for free.

F.N. Plevako was a sincere believer. In his home library, theological literature occupied the most great place. He served as a ktitor (church warden) in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin. He tried to reconcile the views of L.N. Tolstoy with the dogmas of the official church, and in 1904, at a reception with Pope Pius X, he argued that God is one, which means there should be one faith in the world, and Catholics and Orthodox Christians are obliged to live in good harmony.

Fyodor Nikiforovich loved and remembered his hometown Troitsk all his life: “I’ll hardly see you, and even if I do see you, there’s not much of the old, dear thing left in you. They tell me and confirm what was said with the album sent, that you have grown up, become prettier, have become a person of status: instead of parish and district schools, you are UkrainianHe attended classical and women's gymnasiums and a real school. On the benches of your schools, Tatar, Kyrgyz and Bashkir children sit next to Russian boys and girls and compete in successes with the indigenous population, sometimes exhibiting such talented young men as any tribe would be proud of in the fields of the boundless Russian kingdom. There is a Russian city there, and the Russian heart beats in the chests of your chicks - my dear fellow countrymen. Have you, my native city, saved the seeds from this seed, so that the harvest of the only needs, for the salvation of Rus', the cause and the ideal, does not degenerate?... I both want and fear to see you after half a century of separation” (Smolyarchuk, V. I. Lawyer Fedor Plevako... P. 18-19).

In 1901, he, a lawyer with all-Russian fame, acted in a local court as the defender of a rich and influential Kazakh in the city. The meeting room of the Trinity Court was full. Plevako carefully prepared for the performance at home. He took as a basis the last phrase from the prosecutor’s speech that the court is not afraid of the rich. According to Plevako, the prosecutor asked for a guilty verdict not because he was obviously guilty, but to prove the strength of the court. Fyodor Nikiforovich decorated his speech with quotations from the Gospel, references to judicial statutes, and examples from Western judicial practice. The lawyer's two-hour speech captivated both the audience and the judges. The essence of the matter was satisfiedabout a complex one: contradictory and false testimony from witnesses, an incorrect examination that determined the value of burnt bread. However, Plevako so skillfully “sorted everything out” that the court decided the case without much difficulty and determined the extent of the responsibility of the perpetrator.

F. N. Plevako was distinguished by a rare combination of the gift of improvisation and a sense of humor, which manifested itself in his many witticisms and puns. He often set out his epigrams and parodies on paper. It is known that he published in Moscow magazines under the pseudonym Bogdan Poberezhny. In 1885 he tried to publish his own newspaper “Life” in Moscow, but quickly went bankrupt.

The circle of friends and acquaintances of the lawyer included writers, actors and artists, including: M. A. Vrubel, K. A. Korovin, K. S. Stanislavsky, V. I. Surikov, F. I. Shalyapin, M N. Ermolova, L. V. Sobinov. From time to time, Plevako organized grand dinners or concerts at home with the invitation of colleagues, scientists and artists.

Our great fellow countryman devoted almost forty years to human rights activities. Excellent examples of his judicial oratory entered the golden fund of Russian culture, became its historical spiritual heritage Diem.

Shortly before his death, Plevako joined political life and became a deputy of the 3rd State Duma from the Octobrist party. Is it any wonder that after 1917 they tried to forget about him, taking into account the unflattering review of Plevako in one of V.I.’s articles. Lenin, dedicated to proving the reactionary essence of the Octobrist party program.

Indeed, Plevako believed in the Tsar’s Manifesto of October 17, 1905, but it is absurd to consider him a reactionary. His ideals have always been universal human culture and dignity human personality. He had all-Russian recognition, but was never loved in high dignitary circles for his audacity and protection of the poor, for his commitment to truth and law. “Up there,” he said from the rostrum of the Tauride Palace, “luxury reigns and gorges itself, indifferently listening to stories about a starving and humiliated brother, through whose labor Russia is being revived... Let us replace songs about freedom with songs of free slavessneeze, called upon by history to erect palaces of law and freedom in a renewed Russia!”

Plevako’s last speeches became his testament to the future, which he warned against revolutionary surgery and drew attention to the old truth: history repeats itself, and not necessarily as a farce, but maybe as something else great tragedy. It turned out that not only his contemporaries, but also us, Plevako’s distant descendants, needed his refined arguments about the advantages of humane legislation over cruel punishments, his idea of ​​truth and law for a country that had been governed for centuries by unlimited administrative violence.

On December 23, 1908, sad news swept over Moscow: Plevako died. On the day of his funeral, thousands of people came to see him off. last way great people's defender. Representatives of all classes and ranks walked in the endless funeral procession. People were united not only by a feeling of deep sorrow and deep gratitude, they understood: on such sons of Russia as F.N. Never mind, and Russia is holding on to the memory of them. Today I want to believe that it will continue to rely on the greatness of this memory. F.N. Plevako was buried at the Vagankovskoye cemetery.

The name of the great lawyer is not forgotten today, in 1996, in memory of the outstanding fellow countryman, the Chelyabinsk Regional Bar Association established the annual award named after F.N. Plevako with the presentation of a diploma and badgeand a bronze bust, the photograph of the laureate is placed on a special stand in the office of the chamber, established by the Russian legal community in 1997 Golden medal named after F.N. Plevako, and in 2003 the Silver Medal named after F.N. Plevako to award the most worthy and honored members of the legal community of Russia, as well as state, public and politicians, legal scholars, journalists, cultural figures, educational institutions and funds mass media for his major contribution to the development of the legal profession and human rights activities. In 2003, a Diploma was established with the award of a Bronze bust of F.N. Plevako.

A conference dedicated to the 165th anniversary of the birth of F.N. Plevako was held in Troitsk and Chelyabinsk

April 26 marks the 165th anniversary of the birth of the great Russian lawyer Fyodor Nikiforovich Plevako. In e that day at home court speaker on the building of the former District Cossack Court (now here is the size urban administration), where Plevako spoke in one of the trials, a memorial plaque was installed.

The initiator of the celebrations was the Chelyabins Chamber of Lawyerswhich region. Beginning would lo supported by the Federal Chamber of Lawyers of the Russian Federation. To pay the debt of memory to the great predecessorlawyers from many Russian regions and descendants of F.N.’s family came. Plevako - Natalya Sergeevna Plevako and Marina Sergeevna Martynova-Savchenko.

The participants of the celebration were welcomed by the mayor of Troitsk M.I. Blue He noted that the name Plevako is as dear to Troitsk as the name of the city’s founder, Count Neplyuev. The opening of a memorial plaque on the city administration building is not only a memorable, but also a deeply symbolic act. Lawyers of the Bar Association Chelyabinsk region and the residents of Troitsk are united in assessing the merits of their eminent fellow countryman. And the city leadership, paying tribute to Fedor Nikiforovich Plevako, also expresses its respect for fundamental democratic and human values: the rule of law, guarantees for everyone of qualified legal assistance in protecting their rights, protecting their good name, honor and dignity.

The conference participants supported the proposal of Chelyabinsk lawyers to hold company-wide events every five years in the homeland of Fyodor Nikiforovich Plevako, aimed at cultivating the best traditions of the Russian legal profession.

During the lifetime of the great lawyer, many of Plevako’s court speeches became anecdotes and even parables passed from mouth to mouth. And a modern lawyer, not by will, but suddenly flaunts an aphorism, calling for help from a brilliant lawyer.

Fedor Nikiforovich Plevako:

“A swear word is an interjection in the folk language”

“Behind the prosecutor is the law, and behind the lawyer is a man with his own destiny, with his own aspirations, and this man climbs onto the lawyer, seeks his protection, and it is very scary to slip with such a burden.”

“There are moments when the soul is indignant at untruth, at the sins of others, indignant in the name of the moral rules in which it believes and lives, and, indignant, strikes the one with whom it is indignant... Thus, Peter strikes a slave who insults his teacher. There is still guilt, incontinence, a lack of love for the fallen, but the guilt is more excusable than the first, for the act is not caused by weakness, not by self-love, but by a jealous love for truth and justice.”

Jokes about court cases with the participation of Fyodor Nikiforovich Plevako:

* In one case, Plevako took up the defense of a man who was accused of rape. The victim tried to recover a decent amount of money from the hapless Don Juan as damages. The woman alleged that the accused dragged her into a hotel room and raped her. Man
in response, he retorted that their love affair took place by mutual consent. And now, the brilliant Fyodor Nikiforovich Plevako is speaking to the jury:
“Gentlemen of the jury,” he declares. “If you sentence my client to a fine, then I ask you to deduct from this amount the cost of washing the sheets that the plaintiff soiled with her shoes.”
The woman immediately jumps up and shouts:
- Not true! I took off my shoes!
There is laughter in the hall. The defendant is acquitted.

* Once Plevako defended an elderly priest accused of adultery and theft. By all appearances, the defendant could not count on the favor of the jury. The prosecutor convincingly described the depth of the fall of the clergyman, mired in sins. Finally, Plevako rose from his place.
His speech was brief: “Gentlemen of the jury! The matter is clear. The prosecutor is absolutely right in everything. The defendant committed all these crimes and confessed to them. What is there to argue about? But I draw your attention to this. A man sits in front of you who has absolved you of your sins in confession for thirty years. Now he is waiting from you: will you forgive him his sin?”
There is no need to clarify that the priest was acquitted.

* The court was considering the case of an old woman, a hereditary honorary citizen, who stole a tin teapot worth 30 kopecks. The prosecutor, knowing that Plevako would defend her, decided to cut the ground from under his feet and himself described to the jury the difficult life of her client, which forced her to take such a step. The prosecutor even emphasized that the criminal evokes pity, not indignation: “But, gentlemen, private property is sacred, the world order is based on this principle, so if you acquit this woman, then logically you should acquit the revolutionaries.”
The jury nodded their heads in agreement, and then Plevako began his speech.
He said: “Russia has had to endure many troubles, many trials over more than a thousand years of existence. The Pechenegs tormented her, the Polovtsians, the Tatars, the Poles. Twelve tongues attacked her and took Moscow. Russia endured everything, overcame everything, and only grew stronger and stronger from the trials. But now... The old lady stole an old teapot worth 30 kopecks. Russia, of course, cannot stand this; it will perish irrevocably..."
The old woman was acquitted.

* Plevako had the habit of beginning his speech in court with the phrase: “Gentlemen, it could have been worse.” And no matter what case the lawyer came across, he did not change his phrase. One day Plevako undertook to defend a man who raped his own daughter. The hall was packed, everyone was waiting for the lawyer to begin his defense speech. Is it really from your favorite phrase? Incredible. But Plevako stood up and calmly said: “Gentlemen, it could have been worse.”
And here the judge himself could not stand it. “What,” he cried, “tell me, what could be worse than this abomination?” “Your honor,” asked Plevako, “what if he raped your daughter?”

* Plevako loved to protect women. He stood up for a modest young lady from the provinces who came to the conservatory to study piano. She accidentally stayed in the rooms of "Montenegro" on Tsvetnoy Boulevard, a well-known refuge of vices, not knowing where her cab driver had taken her from the station. And at night, drunken revelers began to break in on her. When the doors began to crack and the girl realized what they were trying to do from her, she jumped out the window from the third floor. Luckily, she fell into a snowdrift, but her arm was broken. The rosy dreams of musical education perished.
The prosecutor took the stupidest position in this process:
- I don’t understand: why were you so scared, throwing yourself out the window? After all, you, mademoiselle, could crash to death!
His doubts were resolved by the angry Plevako.
- Do not understand? “So I’ll explain it to you,” he said. - In the Siberian taiga there is an animal, the ermine, which nature has awarded with fur of the purest whiteness. When he is fleeing persecution, and there is a dirty puddle on his way, the ermine prefers to accept death rather than get dirty in the mud!..”

* One day Plevako came across a case regarding the murder of his wife by a man. The lawyer came to the court as usual, calm and confident of success, and without any papers or cheat sheets. And so, when it was the turn of the defense, Plevako stood up and said:

The noise in the hall began to subside. Spit again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
There was dead silence in the hall. Lawyer again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
There was a slight rustle in the hall, but the speech did not begin. Again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
Here the dissatisfied roar of the people, who had been waiting for the long-awaited spectacle, echoed in the hall. And Plevako again:
- Gentlemen of the jury!
Something unimaginable began. The hall roared along with the judge, prosecutor and assessors. And finally, Plevako raised his hand, calling on the people to calm down.
- Well, gentlemen, you couldn’t stand even 15 minutes of my experiment. What was it like for this unfortunate man to listen to 15 years of unfair reproaches and the irritated nagging of his grumpy woman over every insignificant trifle?!
The audience froze, then burst into delighted applause. The man was acquitted.

* In Kaluga, in the district court, the bankruptcy case of a local merchant was being heard. F.N. was called as the defender of the merchant, who owed a lot of money. Gobber. Let's imagine the then Kaluga of the second half of the 19th century. This is a Russian patriarchal city with a great influence of the Old Believer population. The jurors in the hall are merchants with long beards, philistines in sensitive clothes and intellectuals of good, Christian character. The courthouse was located opposite the cathedral. It was the second week of Great Lent. The whole city gathered to listen to the “star of the legal profession.”
Fyodor Nikiforovich, having studied the case, seriously prepared for a defensive speech, but “for some reason” he was not allowed to speak. Finally, at about 5 pm, the chairman of the court announced:
- The floor belongs to attorney-at-law Feodor Nikiforovich Plevako.
The lawyer leisurely takes his podium, when suddenly at that moment cathedral hit in big bell- for Lenten Vespers. In Moscow style, with a wide sweeping cross Plevako makes sign of the cross and reads loudly: “Lord and Master of my life, the spirit of idleness... do not give it to me. The spirit of chastity... grant me... and do not condemn my brother...”
It was as if something had pierced everyone present. Everyone stood behind the jury. They stood up and listened to the prayer and the judicial ranks. Quietly, almost in a whisper, as if he were in a church, Fyodor Nikolaevich made a small speech, not at all the one he had prepared: “Now the priest has left the altar and, bowing to the ground, reads a prayer that the Lord will give us the strength “not to condemn our brother.” . And at this moment we gathered precisely in order to condemn and condemn our brother. Gentlemen of the jury, go to the deliberation room and there in silence ask your Christian conscience, is your brother, whom you are judging, guilty? The voice of God through your Christian conscience will tell you of his innocence. Give him a fair sentence."
The jury deliberated for five minutes, no more. They returned to the hall, and the foreman announced their decision:
- No, not guilty.

* Lawyer Plevako’s defense of the owner of a small shop, a semi-literate woman, who violated the rules on trading hours and closed the trade 20 minutes later than expected, on the eve of some occasion, is very well known. religious holiday. The court hearing in her case was scheduled for 10 o'clock. The court left 10 minutes late. Everyone was present, except for the defender - Plevako. The chairman of the court ordered to find Plevako. About 10 minutes later, Plevako slowly entered the hall, calmly sat down in the place of protection and opened his briefcase. The chairman of the court reprimanded him for being late. Then Plevako pulled out his watch, looked at it and stated that it was only five minutes past ten on his watch. The chairman pointed out to him that it was already 20 minutes past ten on the wall clock. Plevako asked the chairman: “What time is it on your watch, Your Excellency?” The chairman looked and replied:
- At my fifteen minutes past ten. Plevako turned to the prosecutor:
- What about your watch, Mr. Prosecutor?
The prosecutor, clearly wanting to cause trouble for the defense attorney, replied with a malicious smile:
- It’s already twenty-five minutes past ten on my watch.
He could not know what trap Plevako had set for him and how much he, the prosecutor, helped the defense.
The judicial investigation ended very quickly. Witnesses confirmed that the defendant closed the shop 20 minutes late. The prosecutor asked to find the defendant guilty. The floor was given to Plevako. The speech lasted two minutes. He declared:
- The defendant was really 20 minutes late. But, gentlemen of the jury, she is an old woman, illiterate, and doesn’t know much about watches. You and I are literate and intelligent people. How are things going with your watches? When the wall clock shows 20 minutes, Mr. Chairman has 15 minutes, and Mr. Prosecutor’s clock has 25 minutes. Of course, Mr. Prosecutor has the most reliable watch. So my watch was 20 minutes slow, so I was 20 minutes late. And I always considered my watch to be very accurate, because I have a gold, Moser watch. So if Mr. Chairman, according to the prosecutor’s watch, opened the hearing 15 minutes late, and the defense attorney arrived 20 minutes later, then how can you demand that an illiterate trader have a better watch and have a better understanding of time than the prosecutor and I?”
The jury deliberated for one minute and acquitted the defendant.

Plevako especially loved to protect women. Once he stood up for a modest girl who came from the provinces to study piano at the conservatory. The cab driver took her to the Montenegro rooms on Tsvetnoy Boulevard, a well-known refuge of vices, but she thought it was an ordinary hotel.
At night, drunken revelers began to break in on her, and the girl, hearing the sound of breaking doors and guessing that she was being harassed, threw herself out the window from the third floor. Fortunately, she did not fall to death, as she fell into a snowdrift, but she broke her arm, and she had to give up her dreams of musical education.

The prosecutor in this trial expressed malicious doubt: “I don’t understand,” he said, turning to the girl, “why were you so scared, throwing yourself out the window? After all, you, mademoiselle, could have fallen to your death!” To this, the angry Plevako immediately replied: “Don’t you understand? So I’ll explain it to you now! In Siberia, in the taiga, there is an animal called the ermine, which is blessed by nature with the purest white fur. When he runs from pursuit, and a dirty puddle gets in his way, the stoat prefers to accept death rather than get dirty in the mud!