Kovalev Valentin

Former Minister of Justice of the Russian Federation
Born January 10, 1944 in Dnepropetrovsk (Ukraine), Russian. Parents - mother Kovalev Polina Alekseevna (1907-89) and father Kovalev Alexey Ivanovich (1905-86) were workers.
In 1973 he graduated from the Faculty of Law of Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov.
In 1975 he graduated from graduate school at the Faculty of Law of Moscow State University, in 1976 he defended his thesis on the problems of forensic evidence ("The English system of forensic evidence", defended on January 16, 1976, Moscow State University). In 1986 he defended his doctoral dissertation on special problems of legality (“The crisis of legality in modern bourgeois criminal proceedings”, approved November 27, 1987).
Graduated from the Higher School of Public Administration named after. D.F.Kennedy Harvard University.
He began working at the age of 14 - at a metallurgical plant and in a rocket and space technology design bureau. He served in the Soviet Army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Colonel of the internal service.
From 1976 to 1986 he taught law and was engaged in scientific work at the Academy of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs. From 1986 to 1991 - professor at the Higher Law School. From 1991 to 1993 - Professor at the Law Institute of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (Moscow). In 1992-93, General Director of the Legal Center of the Foundation for National and International Security.
He was a member of the CPSU until its ban in August 1991.
On December 12, 1993, he was elected to the State Duma for the federal district, on the list of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), number 14 on the list. He was a member of the Communist Party faction.
On January 17, 1994, he was elected one of four deputy chairmen of the State Duma - as part of the coalition list (except for Kovalev: Mikhail Mityukov - first deputy chairman of the State Duma, Alevtina Fedulova, Alexander Vengerovsky, Artur Chilingarov was additionally elected on June 10, 1994).
Since December 1994 - head of the State Duma headquarters on the situation related to the armed conflict in the Chechen Republic, and member of the Supervisory Commission for organizing the negotiation process with the Chechen Republic. In the last days of December 1994, he was appointed chairman of the joint tripartite commission on human rights in Chechnya (Temporary Monitoring Commission for the Observance of Constitutional Rights and Freedoms of Citizens), which included representatives of presidential structures and chambers of the Federal Assembly. Human Rights Commissioner Sergei Kovalev, who was in Chechnya at that time, was appointed as V. Kovalev’s deputy in the commission (without his consent).
V. Kovalev constantly argued for the need for the presence of troops in Chechnya. Repeatedly stated that the commission “does not have” facts of violation of the rights and freedoms of citizens by Russian military personnel; noted only violations of the rights of the Russian-speaking population of Chechnya by Dudayev’s formations.
On January 5, 1995, he was appointed Minister of Justice in the government of Viktor Chernomyrdin (the post of Minister of Justice remained vacant since December 7, 1994, when Yuri Kalmykov left it).
On January 10, 1995, he was expelled from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation faction for joining an “anti-people government” without the consent of the faction.
On August 14, 1996, he was appointed Minister of Justice in the new government of V. Chernomyrdin.
On December 28, 1996, by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation, he was approved as a member of the Interdepartmental Commission of the Russian Federation for the Affairs of the Council of Europe.
Since March 1997 - member of the Federal Commission on the Problems of Chechnya.
He retained his ministerial post in the government of Chernomyrdin - Chubais - Nemtsov, reorganized in March-April 1997.
He is the vice-president of the international organization "Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation" (PABSEC), which includes official delegations of parliaments of 11 states.
Academician of the "International Slavic Academy" (since 1993).
On February 6, 1995, he was awarded the rank of State Counselor of Justice of the Russian Federation.
He published about 200 scientific works, including several monographs, on problems of jurisprudence (organizing the activities of law enforcement agencies, ensuring the rule of law, criminal proceedings, the law of evidence, compensation for damage caused to the state and citizens by illegal actions of officials). Some of these works have been translated into foreign languages and published abroad.
Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation (1996).
Author of the book “Dossier of Repression” (about judicial and extrajudicial repression in many countries of the world), for which in 1990 he was awarded a diploma from the All-Union competition for the best works of popular science literature.
He was accused of embezzling more than 1 billion “old” rubles, with 740 million rubles being personal property. The trial of Valentin Kovalev is currently ongoing.
He is interested in classical literature, classical music, winter sports, and also loves to travel and work on the land.
Wife - Kovaleva Elena Nikolaevna, daughter - Kovaleva Anastasia Valentinovna (born 1975).