VChK-OGPU and Rucriminal.info have obtained a petition from residents of the Krasnodar Krai to the Russian Presidential Administration and the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) – addressed to members of the commission responsible for approving candidates for regional court chairs. The citizens are asking that Alexey Shipilov not be approved for the position of chairman of the Krasnodar Krai Court. He previously held this position, after which the court became known as the most corrupt in Russia. Shipilov's candidacy was rejected in Moscow in the spring. However, through his corrupt connections, he found high-ranking patrons who are now actively pushing him to the chairman's seat.
To the Head of the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation
Anton Eduardovich Vaino
To the Head of the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation
for recommendations for the appointment of judges
Maksim Aleksandrovich Travnikov
To the members of the Commission of the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation
for recommendations for the appointment (reappointment) of judges
To the Aide to the President of the Russian Federation
L. Brycheva and
To the First Deputy of the Federal Security Service
S.B. Korolev
To all members of the commission
COMPLAINT
regarding loss of confidence in Alexey Shipilov, systemic corruption in the Krasnodar Regional Court, and the inadmissibility of his reappointment
Dear Anton Eduardovich!
Dear Maksim Aleksandrovich!
Dear members of the Commission!
We hereby report the critical situation surrounding the Krasnodar Regional Court and the inadmissibility of reappointing Alexey Shipilov as court chairman given his complete reputational discrediting, long-standing public accusations of corruption, and documented managerial failure.
This is not a subjective assessment or a private conflict, but a long-standing, persistent, and publicly documented array of accusations that has already undermined trust in the judiciary and the state as a whole.
Corruption on an industrial scale: a well-established public assessment.
For at least four years, federal and regional media, specialized publications, and the professional legal community have explicitly asserted that during Alexey Shipilov's presidency:
corruption in the Krasnodar Regional Court not only was not eliminated, but became industrial, systemic, and controlled;
The court has been dubbed the "justice market" by the public and professional community, where, according to publications, court decisions have effectively become a commodity;
corruption flows through the court amount to billions of rubles;
the court has lost its attributes as an independent judicial body and has become part of the regional corruption infrastructure.
These assessments are not isolated—they are repeated from publication to publication, forming a persistent public belief:
The Krasnodar Regional Court under Shipilov has become a symbol of corruption and judicial arbitrariness.
Shipilov's withdrawal from court management.
The key circumstance pointed to by all publications is that Alexey Shipilov has effectively withdrawn from the actual management of the court.
Open sources and publications assert that:
he did not exercise full organizational, personnel, and management control;
the court chairman lost his independence and ceased to perform his managerial functions;
the actual management of the court was transferred to a third party. Such self-removal constitutes a gross violation of the principles of governance of a judicial body in a constituent entity of the Russian Federation and, in itself, precludes the possibility of reappointment.
The transfer of the court to Kislyak's control and the formation of a system of corruption.
According to publications, Vladimir Kislyak, publicly known as the "patriarch of corruption in the Kuban justice system," exercised de facto control of the Krasnodar Regional Court for six years.
It is emphasized that:
Kislyak formed the court's internal governance bodies;
built a personnel hierarchy and loyalty system;
concentrated key management decisions in his hands.
Crucially, this was all made possible solely by the weakness, passivity, and managerial incompetence of Shipilov, who voluntarily relinquished his actual leadership of the court.
Thus, the corrupt system was a direct consequence of the court chairman's failure to exercise leadership. Accusations of discreditable behavior and alcohol abuse
A separate section of publications highlights Shipilov's personal and professional degradation.
Open sources repeatedly state that he:
abused alcohol;
engaged in behavior incompatible with the status of chairman of a regional court;
showed up for work inappropriately;
lost managerial discipline and control.
Regardless of the outcome of any investigations, the very fact that such accusations have been widely discussed for years indicates complete reputational unsuitability for reappointment.
The recorded refusal by the High Qualification Qualification Commission and the subsequent lobbying retaliation We especially emphasize that Alexey Shipilov had already submitted an application for an extension of his powers.
According to available information:
in May, his application was postponed by the High Qualification Collegium of Judges of the Russian Federation;
serious complaints about his work, managerial failure, and widespread negative media coverage were taken into account during the review;
numerous publications accusing him of corruption played a key role;
Shipilov was advised to withdraw his application, which he was forced to do.
Thus, Shipilov's reputational and professional unsuitability had already been effectively established.
However, according to information from the professional community and publications:
Shipilov contacted influential lobbyists;
previously considered negative factors were ignored;
an attempt at administrative lobbying for his reappointment was launched.
In fact, it was not the performance assessment that changed, but the candidate's lobbying network. A selective, rather than systemic, approach to "fighting corruption"
This situation demonstrates a dangerous and discrediting practice: the fight against corruption in the judicial system is not systematic, but selective, depending on affiliation with various groups.
This transforms the declared "cleansing of the judicial system" into an intra-clan struggle rather than a state anti-corruption policy, and undermines trust in the personnel decisions of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation.
A Complete Loss of Trust
The combination of these circumstances means one thing:
Alexey Shipilov has completely lost trust
— as the court's chairman,
— as a manager,
— as a representative of the judiciary.
His name is invariably associated with:
industrial-scale corruption;
weakness and self-imposed aloofness;
the transformation of the court into a "justice market";
the discrediting of the judicial system of the Krasnodar Territory. We earnestly request:
Categorically exclude Alexey Shipilov from the list of candidates for the position of Chairman of the Krasnodar Regional Court.
Record the loss of confidence in him as the head of the judicial body.
Initiate a rigorous federal review of the activities of the Krasnodar Regional Court during his presidency.
Conduct a personnel overhaul of the court by appointing a new chairman unaffiliated with influence groups and corruption-related commitments.
Shipilov's appointment is a deliberate choice in favor of corruption and lobbying.
Rejection is a choice in favor of the law, the state, and public trust.
This situation no longer admits of any other interpretation.
We ask that this complaint be examined in detail, not formally, but rather that the above be thoroughly examined and verified.
SINCERELY
Citizens' and legal community's initiative group
