Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Lebedev

Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Lebedev was born in Moscow. He graduated from the Law Faculty of Moscow State University (MSU) in 1968. He began his legal career as a judge in the Leningradsky District Court of Moscow, rising to become Chairman of the Moscow City Court in 1986 during the perestroika reforms.

In July 1989, Lebedev was elected Chairman of the Supreme Court of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, he retained his position as Chief Justice of the newly independent Russian Federation, serving continuously until his death in 2024. During his 35-year tenure, Lebedev oversaw the creation of Russia's modern post-Soviet judicial framework, including the reintroduction of trial by jury, the digitization of court proceedings, the integration of arbitration courts into the Supreme Court, and the humanization of criminal sentencing guidelines.