Before the appeal process started, a call by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev for the trio to be given a suspended sentence and released as well as signs of mercy from the powerful Russian Orthodox Church had given rise to some hopes among their supporters.
However the lawyers have cautioned that a shortening of the verdict rather than an acquittal is the most they can hope for, a prediction that Putin’s latest comments did little to dispell.
Under Russian law, an appeal contests both the conviction itself and the length of the punishment.
The hearing is due to start in the Moscow city court at 0700 GMT with a decision possible, although far from certain, on the same day.
The women have been held in a Moscow prison since their March arrest. Footage from their cells recently published on the website of opposition magazine The New Times show modest quarters of two metal bunkbeds and some cupboards covered with flowery oilcloths.
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