“Omsk-Inform”: Alexei OBUKHOV: “An in-house lawyer is a chemist, process engineer, and builder”

Today government institutions, public organizations and commercial companies have legal departments. Omsk-Inform Agency found out how lawyers worked nowadays.

On December 3, the Lawyer’s Day is celebrated in Russia. The date is timed to coincide with implementation of the Judicial Statues of 1864, which were fundamental for the whole judicial reform by Alexander II. Even historians of The Soviet Union considered that reform progressive; however the reform starting date has been celebrated as a professional holiday for Russian lawyers only since 2008. It was the way for the Government to emphasize the importance of jurisprudence in the modern life of the country once again. At the same time there are still questions like: “Why do we need lawyers?”  Mass media and fiction books sow the seeds of doubt about the need for lawyers by pushing the issue related to certain unprincipled lawyers who are capable of becoming “the devil’s advocate” for big money. According to Deputy General Director for Legal Affairs of the AO GC Titan Alexei Obukhov, the dislike of lawyers is largely a myth that has developed in the West.

“I think such a stereotype has come from English jokes. Let me tell you one: a dog hit by a car and a lawyer hit by a car – what is the difference? There was a brake way in the first case. This is English subtle humor. The actual situation in Russia is the opposite – everyone wants to have a lawyer among friends. The majority of people think that lawyers are defenders and always ready to help. In general there are lots of myths about lawyers. For example, many people think every lawyer must know all the law branches, can help not to get into prison and consult a granny on the way she can receive raised pensions. It makes me smile”.

What do lawyers actually have to do? What qualities should have a real lawyer?  

“Of course, not every person can be a lawyer. If you want to work as a lawyer you should have many qualities. There are people who have legal education but they do not have the same way of thinking as lawyers do. In my opinion a lawyer should have analytical mind-set and be very stressful since his decisions affect the company's profit or loss or even a human destiny. It is obvious that a member of our profession should have a quite high level of IQ, public speaking skills and be sociable. I would also add one more quality – diligence. But this quality can be learnt. Learning the others is more difficult”.

What is the hardest part of your job for you personally?

“Probably, the hardest part of my job is overcoming failures. For some lawyers losing a case can lead to professional burnout.  Not everyone can handle it. The problem is that when it comes to other professions, you know the result depends only on you, but in legal sector the situation is different. There is another party in the court, the judge, another view on the matter. You are responsible for the result, but you cannot influence it 100 percent”.

What do you do to effectively prepare for the court process?

“Every time I prepare for the process I always say my speech out loud (it’s better to do it in front of a mirror). And one more piece of advice – always check the position you’ve chosen. Probably, there is new law practice or legislation has been changed, or your opponent has changed his tactics; After all, you didn't consider something from the beginning”.

Do lawyers need specific knowledge when working for a company from the real economy sector?

“I have been working in an industrial company as a lawyer for 14 years. It wasn't easy for me at first, but it's always very interesting. And it must have been more than a year before I began to understand the technology of production and chemical processes. Speaking of what it takes to be well effective in the profession. A lawyer must go into everything related to his work or even his current task and speak the same language as a narrowly focused specialist. Whether it is chemical processes, ecology, equipment production, construction projects or IT sector. Only then you can succeed in court or another task. For example if the matter is related to a poor quality repair of a railway tank car, you must arrive at a site, inspect the tank car and understand how the wheelsets are arranged, what the tank itself consists of, what the shutoff valves look like, and so on”.

How often do lawyers suffer from professional burnout? How do they overcome it?

“Personally, I have never wanted to quit the job. Jurisprudence, as well as medicine, has a wide range of issues to address. Solving various problems saves from professional burnout. At one time I managed to avoid it as I was interested in English law. When I took part in negotiations with a foreign company for the first time my professional world changed a lot. For several years I read all the literature that appeared in Russia on this subject, watched seminars, and ordered foreign textbooks. I even managed to participate in several international conferences in London and meet English lawyers. I learnt how specific their work and legal system were. It helped me not only to avoid professional burnout but also contributed to my future work. I think it works the same way with other lawyers.

If you suffer from professional burnout then you should change the direction of work”.

And what might that direction be for you?

“My current professional dream is to work in foreign jurisdictions. I wish I gained work experience and skills in countries with an Anglo-Saxon legal system. The first thing that surprised me a lot is that lawyers in England work even harder than in Russia, especially at the beginning of their career. Secondly - there is tremendous job competition in England. There is no guarantee for a graduating student of a prestigious educational institution to find a job. Thirdly – a rather old system of legal precedents is still applied in England. There are precedents from the 18^th century. A couple of times I participated in court processes held in Royal Courts of Justice as a listener and I was impressed by a traditional form of those processes. The judge and attorneys wore wigs and long robes, and the courtroom was like a room in a gothic castle: portraits of outstanding judges from past centuries hang on the walls. This is amazing.

You begin to understand the importance of your profession even more. In general, we have very different legal systems. They have precedent-based legal system, which means their law is based on judicial decisions. We have the opposite - judicial decisions are based on legislative acts”.

At the end of the conversation Alexey Obukhov congratulated all his colleagues on the Lawyer's Day, wished them health, interesting work and successful cases.

Source: Omsk-Inform, 03.12.2021

Back