Issues of Delimitation of Rendering Legal Services by a Lawyer and Intellectual Mediation

In modern Russian legislation, the boundaries of legal assistance, in particular legal advice and abetting a crime are quite blurred, which encourages lawyers to exercise reasonable caution and a balanced approach when working on criminal cases. The need to distinguish between legal assistance and abetting a crime is a rather topical issue, as evidenced by regular meetings of Commissions for the Protection of Lawyers' Rights. Based on the analysis of current legislation and law enforcement practice, the author concludes that, acting within the framework of providing legal assistance to the principal, a lawyer cannot become an accomplice to a crime as an intellectual accomplice. The author makes a distinction between the provision of legal assistance and abetting a crime, summarizes the practice on the basis of which recommendations are offered to lawyers.