In Almaty, on the initiative of the Chairman of the Almaty City Court, Arman Seriktayevich Zhukenov, a museum of the history of the judicial system is being established. Its main goal is to preserve the memory of those who have dedicated their lives to serving justice and to show the development of the judicial system through the life stories of those who shaped it through their daily work. Judges, veterans of the judicial system, and staff of the Department of Judicial Administration for the city of Almaty have joined this effort. The team of the Medeu District Court of Almaty is also contributing to the formation of the future museum exhibition.

One of those whose name rightfully deserves a place of honour in the court's history is Irina Yefimovna Ovsyannikova.

Court staff are spoken of far less frequently than judges. Yet it is they who ensure the smooth organisation of court operations, the flow of cases, the preservation of documents, and the continuity of professional traditions. One such person was Irina Yefimovna Ovsyannikova.

Her name is well known to several generations of employees of the Medeu District Court of Almaty. She devoted more than fifty years of her life to the judicial system, spent nearly forty years heading the criminal records office, and became a model of professionalism, responsibility, and unwavering dedication to her work for many.

Irina Yefimovna was born in 1927 in Alma-Ata. Her youth fell during the years of the Great Patriotic War. Her family, like millions of Soviet citizens, endured severe hardship. According to the recollections of her daughter – a judge in honoured retirement, Natalya Nikolayevna Lapteva – during the war years the family sometimes had to eat goosefoot (wild greens). Only after Irina Yefimovna began working at the court did the family have the means to regularly buy bread.

After graduating from a vocational school, she came to work as a secretary at the Frunzensky District Court, now the Medeu District Court of Almaty. Her entire professional career would be tied to this very court. Over time, Irina Yefimovna became head of the criminal records office. Her job title in her employment record was listed as "Head of Chancery."

A high sense of responsibility, exceptional attentiveness, an impeccable knowledge of judicial record-keeping, and a phenomenal memory were the qualities that earned Irina Yefimovna the well-deserved respect of her colleagues.

According to Natalya Nikolayevna Lapteva's recollections, her mother knew literally every case that passed through the court's office. "She remembered every case, knew where it was located, and could even recall the colour of its cover."

This remarkable memory was combined with principledness and high standards. Colleagues remembered Irina Yefimovna as a person who was equally strict with herself and with those around her. It was precisely thanks to such exactingness that exemplary order was maintained in the office for many years.

No less important a part of her life was mentoring. Dozens of young specialists passed through the office she headed. Many started as couriers, court session secretaries, or specialists, and years later became judges themselves. Irina Yefimovna generously shared her knowledge and experience, believing that a true professional could only be nurtured through daily work and personal example.

One of her protégées was her own daughter, N. Lapteva.

As Natalya Nikolayevna recalls, she herself had not dreamed of working in the court at all. It was her mother who insisted that her daughter come there as a courier. At first, the work was difficult – there were tears, doubts, and a desire to leave. But Irina Yefimovna was convinced that the judicial profession must be learned from the very first steps.

Later, Natalya Nikolayevna graduated from the Faculty of Law, worked as a bailiff, then at the Ministry of Justice of the Kazakh SSR, and subsequently served as a judge at the Medeu District Court for more than twenty years. Years later, she acknowledged that it was her mother's persistence that had largely determined her entire professional destiny.

Irina Yefimovna's many years of conscientious work were repeatedly recognised at the highest level by the state. She was awarded the badges "Winner of the Socialist Competition of Justice Workers" in 1973, 1975, and 1980, and the medal "Veteran of Labour of the USSR" in 1986. Already in independent Kazakhstan, her contribution to the development of the judicial system was recognised with the commemorative medal "30 Years of the Independent Judicial System of Kazakhstan," presented in 2022.

A special place among the family heirlooms is occupied by a crystal vase with an engraved dedication, presented by the Ministry of Justice of the Kazakh SSR in 1976 in recognition of her many years of impeccable service. These awards became symbols of recognition for the professional journey of a person who had served the judicial system conscientiously for decades.

The life path of Irina Ovsyannikova is an example of fidelity to a once-chosen calling. For decades, she ensured the efficient organisation of the court's work, mentored young specialists, and passed on to them her knowledge and extensive professional experience.

Such people rarely seek fame. But it is thanks to their daily work, responsibility, and devotion to their profession that the history of the Medeu District Court was built, the finest traditions of the judicial system were preserved, and the continuity of generations was maintained. Irina Yefimovna Ovsyannikova rightfully left a notable mark on the history of the Medeu District Court and the judicial system of Kazakhstan.

Dinara KUYKABAYEVA,
Judge of the Medeu District Court of Almaty