The subject. Historiography of the participation of the judicial authorities in mass repressions in Soviet Union in the 1930s-1950s.

The purpose of the article is to confirm or disprove the hypothesis that the number of studies of the historical involvement of the judiciary in repression in recent years is increasing; researches cover more and more regions of the former USSR and help to create a complete picture of the special procedural law for political cases in Soviet Union in the 1930s-1950s.

Methodology. The author uses historical legal method. The author analyses legal and historic literature, written by scientists who live in former USSR. Analysis of judicial statistics is used also.

Results, scope of application. The history of the Soviet court remains the subject of active research interest at the present time. At the same time, special publications summarizing the entire body of scientific works on the participation of justice in mass repressions are not issued. A number of works on the history of the judicial authorities contain sections on the application of the rules of judicial procedure to political crimes. Currently, PhD theses, covering an increasing number of regions of Russia, are being defended actively. Unfortunately, some regional researchers are not familiar with the modern historiography of the judicial system and, therefore, repeats some of the conclusions that have been made before. Researchers are trying to formulate new approaches to assess the repressive policy of the Soviet state. For example, V. N. Karaman determines the repressions using political criterion. Researches that are not directly related to the history of judicial proceedings contain valuable information about the participation of courts in mass repressions often. Also, the group of researchers continues to develop the theme of rehabilitation of victims of political repression. New young researchers are emerging.

We should also highlight a group of works on the historiography of mass repression. The appearance of such works is justified. A lot of research has accumulated for 70 years, which need to be generalized and systematized. Three of the PhD thesis, dedicated to the repression of the state security organs, five theses on the mass repressions, 14 theses on the camps during the war were defended during 1990-2010 years in Siberia

The Russian-French seminars "Judicial political processes in the USSR and Communist countries of Europe: a comparative analysis of mechanisms and practices", held in 2009-2011, played an important role in summarizing the main problems of legal proceedings in political cases.

Modern science continues to study various aspects of the application of criminal procedure for counter-revolutionary crimes. Scientists are exploring in detail the role of the j judicial authorities in conducting mass repressions in Soviet Union the 1930-1950s. Individual problems of political justice are considered in detail: types of political processes, rehabilitation procedures, official forgery, cassation on political affairs, etc. There are separate areas of activity of the judicial authorities, directed against certain groups of the population: military, intellectuals, party-soviet officials, peasants, etc. Regional studies continue to appear, reflecting the role of the judicial authorities in mass repressions.

Conclusions. The judicial authorities are considered generally in the context of the activities of all repressive bodies in modern legal and historical scientific literature; researches cover more and more regions of the former USSR and may lead to a complete picture of the special procedural law in political cases in Soviet Union in the 1930s-1950s.

The subject of the article is the application of the constitutional foundations of federalism by the constitutional courts of Germany and Russia. The contribution of the highest courts of Russia and Germany to the development of the constitutional concept of the Federal system through judicial interpretation of the basic principles of Federal statehood directly enshrined in the Constitution and the discovery of unwritten principles is studied.

The purpose of the article is to confirm or disprove hypothesis that German federalism reflects mostly competition model with specific elements of cooperation of federative entities, while the Russian federalism demonstrates the increasing vertical cooperative principles.

The methodology of the study includes analysis, synthesis, description as well as particular academic legal methods (comparative analysis of legislation and judicial decisions, formal‐legal method, interpretation of legal acts).

The main results and scope of their application. Competitive and cooperative principles exist in any system of federal relations. Their ratio, as well as the actual status of the Federation and its constituent entities  reflect the features of a particular model of federal structure. Federal reform in Germany 2006-2009 was aimed to return competitive origins in the German federalism and was opposed to unitarist trends. The origins of significant differences in approaches to the interpretation of the nature of the Union state in Germany and the Federation in Russia are rooted in various historical and political prerequisites for the formation and development of both federal States as well as in national traditions. This is reflected in the varying degrees of doctrinal elaboration of the theory of the federal state in Russia and Germany. The unwritten principle of fidelity to Federal relations is very important for the understanding of the peculiarities of German federalism. It is based on the provisions of the Basic law and disclosed in the decisions of the Federal constitutional court. This principle presupposes a friendly attitude of the central state and the federal lands to each other and to the Federation, cooperation, mutual respect and mutual assistance. It seems that this principle can serve as a basis for the disclosure of relations between the constituent entities and central state in Russia. The functional model of the Federal organization is implemented in Germany, unlike Russia. First of all, the Basic Law for Germany focuses on the horizontal separation of powers and uses the functional principle of the separation of state powers between the Bund and the Federal lands making a distinction, respectively, primarily in the areas of legislation, execution of laws (management) and justice. The Russian concept of vertical separation of powers is characterized by a different approach: horizontal separation of powers does not precede vertical separation of powers. Competence between the Federation and it’s constituent entities is differentiated not by functional, but by subject matter (by subjects of competence).Federal constitutional courts play special role in the interpretation of the constitutional principles of the Federal system and their development. This is confirmed both by the practice of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany (FCC) and by the decisions of the Russian Constitutional Court (CC RF). Revealing the nature of the German Union state on the basis of the interpretation of the provisions of the Basic Law, the FCC relies on the existing doctrine on this issue. The FCC's legal positions on federal relations are also important for Russian doctrine and practice. It concerns the principles of inviolability of the constitutional basis of federal statehood, fidelity to the Federation and friendly attitude to the principles of federal structure, including horizontal and vertical interaction in the system of federal relations, mutual assistance, mutual nature of the rights and obligations of the Federation and its constituent entities.

Conclusions. Unlike Germany, the Russian federalism is increasingly strengthening vertical cooperative basics, which hides the model of a highly centralized Federation. This conclusion is confirmed by the non-recognition of their own source of statehood of the subjects of the Russian Federation, in fact, their lack of quality of constitutional autonomy.

The subject. The article is devoted to process of constitutional conflictology theory formation as separate field of constitutional science, researching constitutional conflicts and different measures for their prevention and solving.

The purpose of the article is to define theoretical base for constitutional conflictology theory formation.

The methodology of the study includes general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, description) and sociological approach. 

The main results and scope of their application. The author describes the genesis of constitutional conflictology theory, its subject, methodology and system. The author substantiates necessity of application of theoretical and methodological bases of conflictology’s science in the constitutional and municipal law for the purpose of forecasting, identification and the resolution of the corresponding constitutional conflicts.

Causes of constitutional conflictology theory formation are:

- accumulation of results of many constitutional researches of different aspects of legal conflict and its expression in constitutional law;

- public power as an object of constitutional relationships and as main cause of conflict situation in society;

- character and scale of constitutional conflict’s aftermaths;

- conflictolgy nature of the Constitution of Russian Federation.

Constitutional conflictology is a research level of legal conflictology exploring constitutional conflict, its causes and methods of prevention and solving, and also constitutional and municipal legal norms with conflictology nature.

A methodology of constitutional conflictology is symbiotic also and contains three different groups of methods:

I group of general scientific methods (dialectical, system, functional);

II group of different scientific methods (historical, logical, statistic);

III group of special methods: legal methods (formal-legal methods, method of a prediction of legal consequences, comparative method), a generic definition description method.

A system of constitutional conflictology consists four interconnected elements:

1)                 theory of constitutional conflict;

2)                 methods of prevention and solving constitutional conflicts;

3)                 constitutional and municipal legal norms with conflictology nature;

4)                 different types of constitutional conflicts and methods of their solving.

Conclusions. Constitutional conflictology theory has been formating in constitution legal science as a separate field exploring constitutional conflict and all of its aspects.

The subject. Normative acts which are the legal basis for remote e-voting conducted as an experiment on a single voting day on September 8, 2019 in Russia. New electoral technologies, including positive and negative forecasts of the success and necessity of this vote, are also in the focus of research.

The purpose of the study is to consider the state of the legal framework for conducting the remote electronic voting experiment in the Russian Federation and its further development. We are aimed also to find out what laws have become the basis for remote electronic voting, what is the degree of by-laws regulation.

The methodology. The main research method is comparative legal method, which allows revealing the concept of the remote electronic voting experiment and its procedural and technological features, as well as such general scientific research methods as analysis, synthesis, induction and deduction.

The main results of the study and their scope. The concept of the experiment, its procedural and technological features are revealed. Skeptics say about the potential danger of this system in the scope of data storage and transmission. One can object to this by referring to the widespread use of Internet banking for transactions, as well as to the demand for the Moscow portal of public services among millions of people. With a high degree of probability it can be concluded that the remote method of voting will be in demand mainly among voters who are regular users of the Internet.  Empowerment monitor the process of electronic voting will increase people's trust in this form of participation in the elections will have a fruitful impact on strengthening the institution of social control, which in the preparation for the experiment on remote electronic voting organized wide expert and public discussion, with participation of representatives of public and human rights organizations are not subjects of the electoral process. Skeptics say about the potential danger of this system in terms of data storage and transmission. Meanwhile, Internet resources are subject to similar threats. used by millions of people for transactions (Internet banking, Internet portal of public services). With a high degree of probability it can be concluded that the remote method of voting will be in demand mainly among voters who are regular users of the Internet.  The expansion of opportunities for monitoring the process of electronic voting will help to increase people's confidence in this form of participation in elections, will have a fruitful impact on the qualitative strengthening of the institution of public control. The necessary provision of success is  proper preparation for the experiment on remote electronic voting, including large-format expert and public discussion, in which representatives of public and human rights organizations that are not subjects of the electoral process are involved. The world experience of a similar procedure shows contradictory results, but in the future it is hardly possible to abandon the technologies that contribute to the democratization of the electoral process. The electronic voting procedure in Russia, regulated by federal laws and by-laws regulation after the elections of 8 September 2019, will be improved taking into account the experience gained.

Conclusions. The experiment of remote electronic voting in Russia will contribute to the development of the electoral process. Suggestions of this study can contribute to the development of the electoral legislation of the Russian Federation.

The subject. At the present stage, the real ideal of legal democracy is ensuring the right of citizens to participate in the management of state affairs, in particular, to elect and be elected to public authorities and to elected public office. The fundamental basis of democracy in a democratic state is free elections. In this regard, the substantive content of the constitutional-legal model of free elections in Russia is considered.

The purpose of the paper. Recently, it is impossible not to note the tendency to narrow the legal understanding of free elections to «the absence of coercion to vote in elections». At the same time, the real understanding of free elections as a democratic value is much broader. Ensuring the constitutional principle of democracy, the improvement of domestic legislation and electoral law determine the study of the substantive content of the domestic constitutional legal model of free elections.

The methodology of the study. The achievement of this goal was promoted by the use of both general scientific and special methods of cognition of social and legal phenomena (comparative legal method, method of legal modeling).

The main results and scope of their application. The position of the author indicated in the work is based on the regulatory legal acts in the field of elections, judicial practice, as well as on the opinions of representatives of legal science in the framework of the problems of real meaningful content of free elections. As a result of the study, a three-part substantive content of the domestic constitutional legal model of free elections is substantiated.

Conclusions. It is concluded that the free formation of their political behavior by participants in the electoral process (voters, candidates, electoral associations) is an integral element of the meaningful content of free elections and in combination with free and voluntary participation in elections, the free will represents a ternary component rather than a binary component.

The subject. The article is devoted to the analysis the dominant scientific conception, related legal problems and a new model of ensuring the implementation of the legitimate interest of the taxpayer.

The purpose of the article is to consider the legal and organizational aspects in the field of ensuring the legitimate interests of taxpayers. The hypothesis of the study is that the level of guarantees for the implementation of the taxpayer's legitimate interests, as permitted, by its legal nature should not be inferior to subjective rights. The traditional view of the guarantees of legitimate interests in practical terms is unproductive, which forces a paradigm shift.

The methodological basis of the study consists of various general (analysis, synthesis, comparative method, description) and special methods of cognition of the phenomena of legal reality. Among them, particularly significant are the legal-dogmatic and comparative legal methods.

The main results and scope of their application. In domestic legal science there is a conceptual point of view that legitimate interests, regardless of industry affiliation, are guaranteed only in general or to a certain extent. At the same time, the jurisprudence of interests in the tax sphere is much more complex in nature than it is presented in the general theory of law.

Through the prism of the features of public relations, traditional approaches to determining the mechanism of guaranteeing legitimate interest are subjected to critical analysis. Based on the needs of practice, a fundamentally new view on security instruments, the place and role of tax officials in the implementation of the legitimate interest is proposed. The point of view of the inferiority of the "warranty degree" guarantee degree of legitimate interests is substantiated, since such selectivity disorients both the taxpayer and the law enforcement agent (courts, tax authorities).

Conclusions. It is concluded that the protective parity of subjective rights and legitimate interests of the taxpayer. In the new paradigm, the duty and responsibility of tax officials will act as guarantees for the implementation of the legitimate interests of taxpayers.

The subject. A number of areas of professional activity in which there is mandatory self-regulation in the Russian Federation were selected: construction (as well as engineering surveys, architectural and structural design), the activities of arbitration managers.

The purpose of the article is to study the experience of foreign countries in the field of self-regulation.  The study took into account the following aspects of regulation of professional activity: features of the regulatory framework, the presence or absence of professional associations that develop standards and rules of activity, especially membership in them.

In addition, the experience of regulation of medical activity as an example of the industry, which in Russia is actively discussed the feasibility of introducing mandatory self-regulation.

The methodological basis for the study: general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, comparison, description); private and academic (interpretation, formal-legal). Economically developed countries were taken, where self-regulation in certain areas have been existing for several decades: the United States, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Canada.

Results, scope. The activities of self-regulatory organizations abroad are regulated by industry legislation, a special law on self-regulatory organizations, as a rule, there is no.

In contrast to the Russian practice, the emergence and further development of self-regulatory organizations abroad is not in direct connection with the emergence of mandatory legislation on mandatory membership in the self-regulating organizations.

In industries with a high degree of danger to third parties (construction, medical activities), in most countries, the system of state licensing is still maintained, which deserves a positive assessment and should be taken into account by the legislator when choosing areas of activity in which state licensing should be replaced by mandatory self-regulation.

In some foreign countries, representatives of consumers are included in the bodies of self-regulatory organizations along with representatives of the professional community, which deserves a positive assessment and can also be used in Russian practice.

Conclusions. Two models of self-regulation are used in foreign practice: voluntary and mandatory. In the case of mandatory self-regulation in foreign countries, as a rule, there is one self-regulating organization, which has the status of a national one. It is obvious that the state control exercised over one self-regulating organization is more effective and less costly than for many of them. Therefore, the experience of foreign countries concerning the transfer of powers to a single self-regulatory organization in the case of mandatory self-regulation should be used in the Russian practice.

The subject of the article is the issues determining the level of legal regulation of instruments of direct municipal democracy.

The purpose of the article is to analyze the judicial practice, especially of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, related to the problems of differentiation of normative competence in the field of municipal democracy between the Federal, regional and municipal levels of government.

The methodology of the study includes systematic approach, formal logical method, interpretation of judicial decisions of Russian Constitutional Court. The issues of determining the level of legal regulation of instruments of direct municipal democracy – elections, referendum, recall of an elected person, voting on changes in the boundaries of the municipality and the transformation of the municipality – are analyzed through the prism of judicial practice.

The main results and scope of their application. The Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation has developed many common positions that can be applied in determining the parameters of rule-making on issues of direct democracy. The Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation confirms the broad competence of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation in the regulation of municipal elections. However, the expansion of the normative competence of the constituent entities of the Federation does not always lead to the democratization of the subject of municipal regulation. The federal and regional public authorities must take into account the interests of municipalities in carrying out the legal regulation of a constituent entities’ matter, and leave them the possibility of legal regulation, including the implementation of direct democracy at the local level. The territorial foundations of local self-government, formation of municipal entities, on the one hand, and the administrative-territorial division of constituent entities of the Russian Federation on the other, have independent significance, its own legal content and belong to different spheres: the first belongs to joint conducting by Russia and its constituent entities, the second belongs to the exclusive jurisdiction of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

Conclusions. The conclusions formulated by the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation in relation to the distribution of legal regulation between the levels of power, the definition of the parameters of municipal rule-making on issues of direct democracy are summarized and commented.

The subject. The article analyzes the trends of community participation in the implementation of local self-government.

The purpose of the paper is to confirm or disprove hypothesis that the involvement of the population in the implementation of local self-government determines the genuine implementation of municipal legal acts and contributes to finding effective solutions to local issues.

The research was carried out with use of main scientific methods (analysis, induction and deduction), special (statistical) method as well as the method of interpretation of the legal acts.

The main results and scope of their application. The same form of direct democracy is mentioned in different Russian laws by different words often. The concept and requirements for the same forms, the limits of their application, the implementation procedures are described in different ways. There is a significant shift in emphasis in the use of various forms of direct democracy at the municipal level. In reality, the ability of local residents to exercise local self-government is significantly reduced. The involvement of the population is increasingly declared as an additional investment tool. The analysis of law enforcement practice shows the emergence of new forms of participation of citizens in the implementation of local self-government, which either do not have proper legal regulation, or it is fragmentary, carried out mainly by bylaws. The majority principle was the basis of decision-making in Russia for a long time, including the Soviet period, i.e. the decision was made on the basis of the opinion of the majority or qualified majority; the minority obeyed the majority. It has become urgent to develop new legal structures to identify and take into account the opinion of the minority in recent years.

Conclusions. The involvement of the population in the implementation of local self-government is a criterion that the norms provided for in the texts of normative legal acts are really beginning to be implemented, the population is increasingly beginning to use them. If citizens lack legal instruments, they initiate their development and adoption in the form of relevant regulatory legal acts or other legal documents. The institutions of power and civil society do not replace each other, but promote mutual harmonious development aimed at improving the quality of life of citizens.

The subject. The paper deals with the search for the place of judicial administrative procedural law in the system of Russian law.

The purpose of the paper is to identify is the judicial administrative procedural law an independent branch of Russian law.

Methodology. The author uses the methods of analysis and synthesis, as well as dialectic approach. The formal-legal interpretation of the Code of Administrative Proceedings, the Code of Administrative Offences, the Commercial Procedure Code, the Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation and is also used.

The main results and scope of their application. The adoption of the Code of Administrative Proceedings in Russia in 2015 revealed many problems in science and legislation. A legislative decision to adopt the Code of Administrative Proceedings is considered as a political decision taken without a proper scientific basis and contrary to established scientific doctrine. Definitions of such basic concepts as "administrative process", "administrative dispute", "administrative justice", and others have not been developed in the period up to 2015 and to date, There is a mention of "administrative legal proceedings" as one of the types, along with civil, criminal and constitutional types of legal proceedings, in the Constitution of the Russian Federation. But administrative procedural legislation is referred to the joint jurisdiction of the Russian Federation and the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, in contrast to other procedural laws, in the Constitution of the Russian Federation. 

       Representatives of the science of civil procedural law, with reference to legal theorists, called judicial administrative procedural law (which is referred to the Code of Administrative Proceedings) the secondary formation, a sub - branch of the fundamental (profiling) branch of civil procedural law. The purpose of judicial administrative procedural law – enforcement of substantive law and conflict resolution in the field of administrative and other public relations. It is noted that the public-legal dispute is not limited to the interaction of the citizen with the executive power. Civil procedural regulation of judicial review of cases arising from public relations is a procedural mechanism of judicial protection of constitutional rights, freedoms and legitimate interests. The Code of Administrative Proceedings lowers the status of cases arising from public legal relations to the status of cases arising from administrative legal relations.

       Representatives of the science of administrative law and procedure, on the contrary, believe that the adoption of the Code of Administrative Proceedings becomes the final act in the formation of a new branch of law – administrative judicial law, although it is a political decision and it’s rules are practically copied from the Civil Procedure Code. At the same time, it is recognized that the Code of Administrative Proceedings needs scientific support, which still needs to be created. An alarming factor is the fact that some scientists propose to include cases concerning imposition of administrative sanctions in the this forming branch of law, although it mixes in fact disputes between individuals and a public entity and imposition of administrative sanctions to the offender by the court.

Conclusions. It is premature to say that judicial administrative procedural law has emerged as an independent branch of Russian law. Prospects for further development of administrative proceedings are very uncertain due to the high proportion of subjective, political factors in the legislative process.

The subject. The article reveals the concept of “estoppel” as a mechanism prohibiting the change of position depending on the change of circumstances or the passage of time.

The purpose of the paper is to identify is it possible to use estoppel in procedural relations in Russia.

Methodology. The author uses the methods of the analysis of legal literature as well as the formal-legal interpretation of the Commercial Procedure Code, the Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation.

The main results and scope of their application. The development of civil and civil procedural legal relations virtually requires the study and application of the doctrinal and practice rules that are new for Russia, but well-known abroad. Among such is the rule of estoppel. It presents a mechanism that prohibits changing of position depending on the change of circumstances or the passage of time. The rule of estoppel attracts the attention of specialists in both civil and civil procedural law, but, despite having the same name, the rule possesses different qualities in substantive and procedural law. Thus, in procedural relations it is necessary to take into account that the court is a necessary participant of any civil procedural relationship. The actions of the parties in themselves do not give rise to any legal consequences; for they must be allowed (sanctioned) by the court.

The main difficulty concerns not with the application of the norms fixing the institute of estoppel, but with the court’s qualification of the case in fact as an estoppel situation. The court should receive a clear and unambiguous position from the party and fix it. Such a fixation is possible, in particular, in a decision that has entered into legal force. The estoppel by judgment used in these cases differs from other kinds of estoppel in that it prevents parties from challenging the circumstances established in a court decision. It is not connected to the actions of the party, which during the whole process defended the position opposite to that which was ultimately put by the court into the basis of the decision. In the future, a party to a new process may reiterate the same facts and circumstances that it asserted earlier. Thus, her position changes in comparison not with her own previous behavior, but rather with a valid judicial decision, which she must observe.

Conclusions. The Russian legislation contains certain provisions allowing for the use of estoppel rule in procedural relations: these are, for example, rules on procedural agreements and rules concerning validity of a court decision. However, considering the specifics of procedural legal relations and the role of the court within them, and taking into account the procedural rights of the parties, the use of estoppel is only possible with the help of legally established methods for the fixation of the participant’s position and his “changing behavior”.