This article explores the mind-set of Russian law students on the cusp of graduation. Drawing on a 2016 survey, the analysis finds that, despite having taken different paths to their degrees, the respondents share a confidence in the Russian courts that distinguishes them from Russians without legal education. Within the sample, a natural division is evident between those who plan to go into state service and those who plan to go into private practice. Aspiring state lawyers are more likely to support the policies of the Putin regime, even when they preference politics over the letter of the law. This strongly suggests that the tendency of judges and state lawyers within the criminal justice system to work as a team to ensure convictions is not solely the result of workplace incentives, as had previously been assumed, but is an element of a worldview that these lawyers share that predates their legal education. Aspiring private lawyers, by contrast, are consistently more skeptical of the state. To the extent that they are later coopted by the state, as studies of criminal defense lawyers suggest, such behavior would likely be the result of a desire to endear themselves to investigators and prosecutors in order to ensure further appointments to represent indigent clients.

中文翻译：

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先天与后天：俄罗斯法律毕业生在国家服务和私人执业方面的比较

本文探讨了即将毕业的俄罗斯法学院学生的心态。根据 2016 年的一项调查，分析发现，尽管他们选择了不同的学位途径，但受访者对俄罗斯法院充满信心，这将他们与没有受过法律教育的俄罗斯人区分开来。在样本中，计划进入国家服务的人和计划进入私人执业的人之间存在明显的自然划分。有抱负的国家律师更有可能支持普京政权的政策，即使他们更喜欢政治而不是法律条文。这有力地表明，刑事司法系统内的法官和州律师作为一个团队工作以确保定罪的倾向不仅仅是工作场所激励的结果，正如之前所假设的那样，但这是这些律师在接受法律教育之前所共有的世界观的一个要素。相比之下，有抱负的私人律师始终对国家持怀疑态度。正如刑事辩护律师的研究表明的那样，如果他们后来被国家收留，这种行为很可能是为了赢得调查人员和检察官的喜爱，以确保进一步任命代表贫困客户。