Anatoly Fedorovich Koni (Russian: Анато́лий Фёдорович Ко́ни; 9 February 1844 – 17 September 1927) was a Russian jurist, judge, politician and writer. He was the most politically influential jurist of the late

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

and a leading Russian liberal. Anatoly Koni was the son of the noted dramatist

Fyodor Koni Fyodor Alexeyevich Koni (Фёдор Алексеевич Кони, 21 March 1809, Moscow, Russian Empire, - 6 February 1879, Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire) was a Russian dramatist, theatre critic and literary historian, editor and memoirist. ...

. Among the public offices Koni held was prosecutor at the district court of

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

since 1878, and member of the

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of South Korea, headed by the President * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative auth ...

since 1907. He taught at the Imperial School of Law and at the

University of Saint Petersburg A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

. Koni led the investigation into the 1888 Borki train disaster and presided over the 1878 jury trial against the revolutionary and attempted assassin

Vera Zasulich Vera Ivanovna Zasulich (russian: link=no, Ве́ра Ива́новна Засу́лич; – 8 May 1919) was a Russian socialist activist, Menshevik writer and revolutionary. Radical beginnings Zasulich was born in Mikhaylovka, in the Smol ...

. As a jurist, Koni was instrumental in liberalizing Russian criminal law, notably in the form of the revised criminal code of 1903. As a member of several reform commissions, he defended

judicial independence Judicial independence is the concept that the judiciary should be independent from the other branches of government. That is, courts should not be subject to improper influence from the other branches of government or from private or partisan inte ...

and the

trial by jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significant ...

. Due to his influence, prison sentences were reduced and special establishments for juvenile criminals were introduced towards the end of the 19th century. While he supported the liberals' call for a constitutional order in Russia, he declined an appointment as Minister of Justice in the government of

Pyotr Stolypin Pyotr Arkadyevich Stolypin ( rus, Пётр Арка́дьевич Столы́пин, p=pʲɵtr ɐrˈkadʲjɪvʲɪtɕ stɐˈlɨpʲɪn; – ) was a Russian politician and statesman. He served as the third prime minister and the interior minist ...

in 1906. Koni was a member of the

State Council of the Russian Empire The State Council ( rus, Госуда́рственный сове́т, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj sɐˈvʲet) was the supreme state advisory body to the Tsar in Imperial Russia. From 1906, it was the upper house of the parliament under the ...

from 1907 to 1917. After the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

which abolished the State Council, Koni was dismissed from his position. After reconciling with the new Soviet government, Koni became a professor at the

Petrograd University Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...

from 1918 and 1922. He also gave many public lectures until his retirement. As a writer, Koni composed poems, works of literary criticism and multiple volumes of

memoirs A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobiog ...

References

Балышев М.А., Шандула А.О. Анатолий Федорович Кони и харьковчане (2007). UNIVERSITATES. Наука и Просвещение. 2007. №3. С. 26-36.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koni, Anatoly Fedorovich Russian judges Russian jurists Russian poets Russian writers 19th-century politicians from the Russian Empire Members of the State Council (Russian Empire)