Vladimir Saraev
Head of the Center for Scientific Support of the Criminal Law Enforcement in the Sports Area
Vladimir Saraev regularly partakes in scientific and scientific and practical conferences, round tables, and meetings on criminal and legal and sports issues held in the State Duma and the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation.
Published over 40 scientific papers, including a workbook entitled Criminal and Legal Protection of Contemporary Professional Sports in Russia and teaching, learning materials. Lead author in the media column "Antisport" has an active scientific and social activity.
He is a member of the editorial board of the Sports: Economy, Law, Management magazine.
An arbiter of the Sports Arbitration Court under the Sports Arbitration Chamber autonomous non-profit organization; an arbiter of the Sports Arbitration Court under the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation.
Was awarded a Commendation of the Minister of Internal Affairs of the USSR, a medal For Loyalty to Duty and Motherland, a public medal To the Glory of Motherland, a public medal Duty. Honor. Courage. Valor, public (cross-shaped) badge To the Glory of the Russian Army of the 1st class, a memorable medal For Promoting Enlightenment, an anniversary medal 90th Anniversary of the Omsk Police Academy of the MIA of Russia.
Married. Has a son and a daughter.
Chairman deputy of the Expert Council for physical culture and sports of the Federation Council Committee for social policy of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. Head of the working group for interpreting the sport legislation of the Committee for sport law in the Russian Lawyers Association. A member of the Legal Commission of the Olympic Committee of Russia.
Doctor of Laws. Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural History (RANH). A member of the Russian Academy of Legal Science (RALS). A member of the Lawyers’ Association of Russia.
Born February 7, 1960 in Vorkuta
1982 – finished Omsk Higher Police School of the MIA of the USSR (currently Omsk Police Academy of the MIA of Russia) with specialization in jurisprudence
1982 – 1988 – held strategical and administrative posts in the internal affairs bodies
1989 – 1999 – provided legal support to businesses
2000 – 2008 – held the position of Head of the Legal Department of the Avangard hockey club, Omsk; during his office he established ISUPHE (Interregional Sectoral Union of Professional Hockey Employers) in 2006; he worked as Deputy Head and then as Head of the Employers Union up to July 2010
2008 – 2010 – Head of the Disciplinary and Arbitration Department – Head of the Disciplinary Committee of the Kontinental Hockey League
2009 – defended his PhD thesis entitled Criminal and Legal Protection of Contemporary Professional Sports in Russia in the dissertation council under the Omsk Police Academy of the MIA of Russia, currently keeps on vigorously carrying out scientific and teaching activity
July 1, 2010 – appointed to the position of Vice-President – Head of the Legal Department of the Kontinental Hockey League pursuant to the order of Alexander Medvedev, President of the Kontinental Hockey League
2011 – was elected Head of the Center for Scientific Support of the Criminal Law Enforcement in the Sports Area, whose goal is to assist in developing a new scientific approach and to lay foundation for scientific researches in this field
2011 – became a member of the National Organization Committee at the 17th International Sports Law Congress as a renowned Russian sports law expert
October 13, 2011 – was appointed a member of the Sports Arbitration Presidium under the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation pursuant to the order of Sergey Katyrin, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry
November 28, 2011 – was accepted for membership in the Russian Academy of Legal Sciences
June 9 – October 16, 2012 – was working on the governmental position of the Minister of Youth Affairs, Physical Culture and Sport in Omsk region (sent resignation on own accord)
In 2013 invited to the programme committee of the I Annual International Sport Law Forum (RUDN, Moscow) as a competent Russian specialist in sport law
On June 21, 2013 by the decree of the Ministry of Law of the Russian Federation No 1274-p was accredited an independent expert, authorized to perform independent anti-corruption assessment of legal acts and normative legal acts projects
By the decree of the Continental Hockey League president Aleksandr Medvedev, was appointed on the position of President`s Adviser for legal issues on July 1, 2013
Simultaneously continues activity in the Scientific Centre and Expert Council for physical culture and sports of the Federation Council Committee for social policy. Also finishes the doctoral thesis on the topic “Amenability for crimes in sports: theory, legislation and practice in the application”.
He is an initiator of:
1) implementation of certain regulations in the criminal law and establishment of criminal liability for:
• criminally negligent manslaughter and unintentional production of grievous bodily harm to sportsmen during sports events;
• illegal circulation and smuggling of substances and/or usage of methods included in the prohibited list;
2) strengthening criminal and legal prohibition with respect to:
• hooliganism during sports events, including playground (field) fights among sportsmen as well as pre- and post-event fights among sports supporters;
• bribery of participants and organizers of professional sports competitions as relates to the addition of newly specified perpetrators, in particular sports agents, criminal and legal qualification and legislative definition of bribery, ascertainment of formal qualifying elements of a crime, including match fixing or premeditated bias by a referee aggravated by moderate or large-scale profit-making or infliction of moderate or large-scale damage, etc.;
• illegal entrepreneurship in the sports area, in particular carrying out unlicensed medical activity and provision of abroad employment services to citizens of the Russian Federation (sportsmen);
• transfer-related fraud and misappropriation, construction-related investment embezzlement, and improper expenditure of funds intended for organization and holding of sports events;
• coercive deal-making or refusal to make a deal in providing contractual support to commercial activity in the sports area;
• abuse of power by heads of physical education and sports organizations or departments to the detriment of the organization’s legal interests and for the purpose of profit-making in a form of unjustified bonus payments and remunerations aggravated by absence of high sports achievements and the organization’s unprofitable activity.
2008–2010 – as a member of the Sports Law Committee of the Lawyers’ Association of Russia (presided by Alekseyev S.V.) partook in expert assessments and elaboration of conclusions on the drafts of the following federal laws: On the Introduction of Alterations in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (on the establishment of criminal liability of coaches, doctors and other persons for coercion of sportsmen to take performance-enhancing drugs and/or use doping methods); On the Introduction of Alterations in the Article 184 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (on the problem of ascertainment of circumstances that exclude criminal liability for bribery of participants or organizers of professional sports competitions and commercial entertainment contests); On the Introduction of Alterations in the Russian Federation Code of Administrative Offences (on the establishment of administrative responsibility for instigation or other forms of sportsmen’s involvement in the use of substances and/or methods from the prohibited list).
2010–2011 – as a member of the working groups (headed by Fetisov V.A.) and the Expert Council of the Commission on Physical Education, Sports and Olympic Movement Development (Commission and Council being presided by Fetisov V.A. and Kvint V.L. respectively) constantly partook in development and comprehensive expert assessment of the drafts of the following federal laws: On the Introduction of Alterations in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (with respect to alterations of the Articles 348.6 and 348.12), On the Introduction of Alterations in the Federal Law On Physical Education and Sports in the Russian Federation (with respect to the sports training improvement and enhancement of sports federations’ functioning), On the Introduction of Alterations in the Russian Federation Code of Administrative Offences (with respect to the establishment of administrative responsibility for breaches of laws regulating performance-enhancing drug-taking prevention).
On June 28, 2012 Federal Law No 136-FL “On making amendments to the Labour Code of the Russian Federation” was adopted as well as article 16 of the Federal Law “On physical culture and sport in the Russian Federation”.
The law was developed under under the supervision of V.A. Fetisov and with direct participation of V.V. Saraev and his colleagues (A.V. Shapovalov, A.V. Serduykov) within the corresponding working group. The law states that labour contracts with specific groups may contain conditions of athletes` and coaches` liability to warn their employers about the self-initiated contract termination in more than one month, if the norms, approved by the all-Russian sport federations for particular kinds of sports, restrict the transfer of such athletes and coaches to other sport clubs or any other athletic organizations and those restrictions sets the warning time more than one month. The duration of warning time about self-initiated contract termination is defined by the parties of a labour contract in accordance with the norms, approved by the all-Russian sport federations for particular kinds of sports. The restrictions for transfer of athletes and coaches in some kinds of sports (the list of those kinds is approved by the Ministry of Sport of Russia) will help to normalize the labour market in sport and fasten the legal position of the Russian sport and athletic organizations on the international transfer market.
In December 2012 was involved into the work of conciliatory commission on the Federal Law No 257-FL from December 25, 2013 “On making amendments to the Federal Law “On physical culture and sport in the Russian Federation”, which defined the legislative notion of basic sports.
In 2013 was involved as an expert into the discussions of the following draft bills: No 177585-6 “On making amendments to the separate legislative acts of the Russian Federation for the purpose of keeping public peace and safety during official sport competitions” and No 200769-6 “On making amendments to the Federal Law “On physical culture and sport in the Russian Federation” and some legislative acts of the Russian Federation for the purpose of prevention of illegal influence on the results of official sport competitions”.