In non-democracies, lawyers face various constraints ranging from the absence of acquittals or violations of their clients’ rights to threats and criminal proceedings against them. Yet, we know little about the working conditions of attorneys’ in authoritarian regimes, and what influences their desire to remain in the profession. Using a survey of attorneys in Russia, our study demonstrates which factors impact the desire to stay in the profession and how self-legitimacy influences these choices. We find that the frequency of violations of their clients’ rights by law enforcement agencies undermines self-legitimacy of attorneys. In turn, this increases the attorneys’ willingness to leave the profession, which is mitigated by two factors. First, attorneys with closer contacts with their colleagues in the regional bar associations are less willing to leave the bar for other career options. Second, when such associations actively exclude their members for violations of professional ethics, bona fide attorneys are more willing to stay. Lastly, we find that the expressed desire of leaving the profession transforms into actual voluntary leave in the following year. These findings have important implications, as attorneys do not only defend their clients but can also influence the political regime, either through the mobilisation of law or engaging into collective actions with their colleagues.

在非民主国家，律师面临各种限制，从没有无罪无罪或侵犯其当事人的权利到对他们的威胁和刑事诉讼。但是，我们对律师在专制政权下的工作条件知之甚少，以及什么因素影响了他们继续留在该行业的愿望。通过对俄罗斯律师的调查，我们的研究证明了哪些因素影响了留守职业的愿望，以及自我合法性如何影响这些选择。我们发现，执法机构侵犯其客户权利的频率破坏了律师的自律性。反过来，这增加了律师离开该行业的意愿，这可以通过两个因素来缓解。第一，与区域律师协会的同事有更紧密联系的律师不太愿意离开律师事务所从事其他职业。其次，当此类协会因违反职业道德而积极将其成员排除在外时，善意的律师更愿意留下来。最后，我们发现，离开该职业所表达的愿望转化为来年的实际自愿假期。这些发现具有重要意义，因为律师不仅可以为客户辩护，还可以通过动员法律或与同事共同采取行动来影响政治体制。我们发现，离开该行业表达的愿望转化为第二年的实际自愿假期。这些发现具有重要意义，因为律师不仅可以为客户辩护，还可以通过动员法律或与同事共同采取行动来影响政治体制。我们发现，离开该行业表达的愿望转化为第二年的实际自愿假期。这些发现具有重要意义，因为律师不仅可以为客户辩护，还可以通过动员法律或与同事共同采取行动来影响政治体制。