Sources of law. Forms of law. Sources and forms of Russian law

Throughout its existence, mankind has tried to find the most effective way of regulating relations that arise in the course of its immediate activities. During the search, various methods were tried. The first of these is tyranny, that is, the absolute power of a single person. Very quickly, this method showed its complete inefficiency, because only the weakest individuals succumbed to control. More brave people could withstand the onslaught and threats.

In place of such violence came religion. This method of coordinating public relations has shown much greater effectiveness. But he also could not fully cope with the task, because religion is able to rally only coreligionists. Therefore, when all methods showed their inaction, the right was invented. This set of norms authorized by a separate social group is the best regulator of social relations. There are specific sources and forms of law. They show the efficacy and characteristics of this category. Therefore, sources of law, forms of law should be analyzed in order to understand in detail all aspects of the regulator of social relations.

What is right?

Any category has its own form, manifestations and features. However, for a detailed analysis of a particular phenomenon, its concept should be analyzed. For example, what is law? According to a widespread theory, it is a regulator of social relations, consisting of a whole system of state-sanctioned rules of conduct. The last element, in turn, is characterized by official fastening. That is, such rules are norms that are generally binding for all.

In addition, the violation of such standards entails the appearance of a negative state reaction. That is, citizens are legally responsible. The existence of the right depends on many factors. First of all, human consciousness is key. That is, people should understand the essence of those duties that are assigned to them by the state formation. Another important element, of course, is the system of sources and forms of the realization of law. It is thanks to them that this regulator operates in one or another state.

Sources of law (form of law): concept

There are many theoretical developments on the origins of jurisprudence. Many scientists over the years tried to identify where their origin finds the right and how it manifests itself. In the 21st century, a general theoretical approach was developed. According to him, the sources (forms) of law are the specific ways by which norms are fixed, acquire their external expression. In this case, there are a large number of interpretations of the understanding of this term.

Difference of concepts

It should be noted that sources of law, forms of law are not always identified. Very often the presented concepts are presented as completely different terms. For example, the sources of law are objective phenomena of reality, which generate specific rules of conduct sanctioned by the state. In turn, the form is called the official way of expression, the set of norms already created. In this case, there is also a third view of this problem. According to him, sources are historical monuments of law, examples of which can be called the laws of Hammurabi , etc. But if we analyze the sources and forms of Russian law, then in this case the terms presented are absolutely identical.

Types of sources (forms)

In the legal science one can find many approaches to distinguishing the types of the phenomenon considered in the article. But, as practice shows, there is a single, classical view of the species division. According to him, the sources (forms) of law include such documents and concepts:

• Legal act.
• Legal precedent.
• Legal custom.
• Normative contracts.
• Science (theory, doctrine, ideas, etc.).

The list gives the main forms (sources) of law that exist today in the world. Of course, not all of them are used in the Russian Federation, which will be mentioned later in the article.

Features of the normative act

Sources of law (forms of law) are official documents or acts. In many states they are basic. The normative act is good because its provisions are written in official documents, and do not remain in the memory of people. Thus, it is not only effective, but also easy to use. As a rule, the normative act is an official document issued in writing.

The main advantages of this source (form) of law are the following factors:

1. Through it, you can influence public relations as quickly and fully as possible.
2. The implementation of norms is possible through coercive methods.
3. To use the provisions of normative acts, it is possible to involve specific subjects, which are bodies of state power.
4. The normative act is understood equally throughout the territory of use.

It should also be noted that the sources and forms of Russian law are mostly based on a normative act. It is the key in this system.

Precedent

The forms (sources) of Russia's law do not contain a precedent in their structure. In other words, it is not recognized on the territory of our state. However, in the countries of the Anglo-Saxon legal family, this source not only exists, but is also actively applied in practice.

In addition, it is more relevant than the normative act. In fact, a precedent is a decision of an official body in a case that becomes general, a reference for all subsequent reviews of similar situations. This source is the most ancient of all existing. Because the precedent was developed and widely used in the states of the ancient world. A modern type of source appeared in England in the 12th century. The precedent has some peculiarities:

• Multiplicity. It shows that the authorities that issue official decisions can generate such a source.
• Casuiness is a feature that speaks about the specifics of the precedent. That is, it appears and is used in specific, point-like cases.
• Flexibility. In other words, to solve one case there are several ways of development of events.

Thus, the precedent is a sufficiently effective source (form) of law. However, its use is possible only in some states, the legal system of which has its own peculiarities.

Customary nature

Sources of law (forms of law) developed in most of the customs that existed before the creation of the regulator of public relations mentioned in the article. They are a rule of conduct that is unwritten. The legal custom arises from the application of certain norms for a large amount of time. At the same time, such a source must be recognized by the state. Otherwise, its use will not be of an official nature. There are a number of features that customs characterize, for example:

1. It must exist for a long time. The use of custom should enter into the habit of people and not cause any questions. In other words, this rule becomes generally accepted.
2. The custom in the vast majority of cases is an oral source of law. It is not recorded anywhere. It exists in the minds of people who apply it constantly.
3. As a rule, all customs, without exception, exist in a certain territory. This indicates their local character. If you do not take into account the specifics of the legal system of the Russian Federation, this source is in most cases inseparable from religious norms.

Thus, custom is an effective local source and form of expression of legal norms. Today it is actively used in the international legal field.

Normative agreements

Agreements of normative content on an equal basis with other represented categories are the source of law. But it should not be confused with the usual civil contract. It must necessarily use the norm, which is attributed to a certain number of specific persons. Given these features, it can be concluded that a normative treaty is an act of will of individual participants aimed at establishing and creating a certain legal regime. It is used in most faucet today. The forms (sources of law) of the Russian Federation also contain normative treaties. In the Russian Federation, it is used to solve domestic issues.

Science of a legal nature

The most common and truly common source of law is science. It is the theoretical development in this area that allows us to keep pace with the times and maintain the public relations regulator in the proper way. To date, the legal science is actively developing in almost all countries. Its manifestations are doctrines, theories and ideas.

Conclusion

So, we examined the forms (sources) of law in the Russian Federation and the world. It is worth noting that almost every one of them is active today. This makes it possible to effectively implement the law, coordinate the relations of society as quickly and efficiently as possible.