Judge Oleg Nefedov, who declared LGBTQ+ people an “extremist organization,” designated the late Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF) a “terrorist organization,” and effectively legalized the Taliban, will become head of the Russian Supreme Court’s civil cases panel, according to a report by the newspaper Vedomosti.
On May 26, the Higher Qualification Board of Judges will consider Nefedov’s candidacy for the post of deputy Supreme Court chair and chair of the panel. The position is currently held by Yury Glazov.
The legal news outlet Pravo.ru noted that Glazov’s term expires in September. He did not put himself forward for another term.
A Vedomosti source said Nefedov is considered one of the most prominent Supreme Court judges of recent years, as he regularly handled high-profile political cases.
It was Nefedov who ordered the liquidation of the independent PARNAS party; refused to allow anti-war candidates Yekaterina Duntsova and Boris Nadezhdin to run in the 2024 presidential election; declared the nonexistent “international LGBT movement” and “international Satanism movement” extremist; and designated the Anti-War Committee of Russia and the U.S.-registered legal entity of the Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF), as terrorist organizations. He also heard Navalny’s lawsuit against the penal colony in the Vladimir Region where the opposition leader was held, as well as his claim against the Ministry of Justice.
Nefedov also suspended Russia’s ban on the Taliban, effectively allowing the group to operate in the country after two decades of being recognized as a terrorist organization.
Vedomosti noted that the civil cases panel is one of the Supreme Court’s busiest, helping shape legal practice in disputes involving banks, insurers, government agencies, and employers.
Supreme Court Chair Igor Krasnov, Russia’s former prosecutor general, has endorsed Nefedov’s nomination.
