I was taken aback the other day to open up the Moscow Times website and find an glowing opinion article written by Brian Zimbler, a Moscow based lawyer of the firm Dewey & LeBoeuf.  The article, which heaped praise upon Russia as an improving working environment for the legal profession, argued that the Kremlin is “bucking the trend” and taking “serious steps” toward fighting legal nihilsm. 

I do not know Zimbler, and I think that we must keep in mind that it is possible that this article was composed before the murder by medical blackmail of Sergei Magnitsky and therefore held no intention in this regard.  It is possible the article is entirely unrelated to the Hermitage events.  But the timing of its publishing – coming only six days after the death – is in poor taste.  Writing at Am Law Daily, it seems Brian Baxter was also intrigued by the timing and tone of the article, prompting him to punch up a balanced report on the topic.  It is a must read.

If this were indeed a case of opportunism – an attempt to please the Kremlin, gain points with Putin and guarantee the survival of one’s business and the guarantee of lucrative future clients, then it would mark the lowest point in Russian law to date in the Putin era, and that’s saying a lot.