Abstract: This article discusses the issue of the legislative regulation of the concept and characteristics of public association in the post-Soviet Ukraine. The subject of this research is the legal and actual nature of the concept of “public association”. The author examines the difficulties of the Ukrainian reform in application of some of the European standards of the constitutional law regulation of such institutions of civil society as political parties and public associations. Analysis is conducted on the separate positions of the new Ukrainian law “On Public Associations” of 2012 and their correspondence with the Constitution of Ukraine of 1996. The author substantiates that in the current political legal realities of Ukraine, the administrative approach of the legislator in defining the concept of “public association” is unjustified. The current version of the Ukrainian law “On Associations of Citizens” of 2012 does not correspond with the constitutional thesis on citizens’ right to freedom of formation into political parties and public organizations. Therefore, it is necessary to use the positive experience of application of the norms of the repealed law “On Associations of Citizens” in the legislative practice of Ukraine.

Abstract: This article discusses the issue of the legislative regulation of the concept and characteristics of public association in the post-Soviet Ukraine. The subject of this research is the legal and actual nature of the concept of “public association”. The author examines the difficulties of the Ukrainian reform in application of some of the European standards of the constitutional law regulation of such institutions of civil society as political parties and public associations. Analysis is conducted on the separate positions of the new Ukrainian law “On Public Associations” of 2012 and their correspondence with the Constitution of Ukraine of 1996. The author substantiates that in the current political legal realities of Ukraine, the administrative approach of the legislator in defining the concept of “public association” is unjustified. The current version of the Ukrainian law “On Associations of Citizens” of 2012 does not correspond with the constitutional thesis on citizens’ right to freedom of formation into political parties and public organizations. Therefore, it is necessary to use the positive experience of application of the norms of the repealed law “On Associations of Citizens” in the legislative practice of Ukraine.

Abstract: In this article the author analyzes the procedure for legalization of social organizations and political parties as a legal institution within the framework of constitutional order protection in Ukraine. The author pays attention to the need to distinguish civil law and public law approaches in defining the official procedure for provision of legal status for political parties and social organizations to social associations of people.  The author analyzes the value of this procedure in the relations between social organizations, political parties and the state.  Special attention is paid to the analysis of judicial practice of forced dissolution of associations of citizens in Ukraine, such as Sevastopol City Youth Association "Proryv", "Donetsk Republic", Kharkiv Regional Social Organization "Eurasian Youth Union", which were dissolved by court in 2006, 2007 and 2008 accordingly.  The author supports the position that legalization of social organizations and political parties plays an important role as a stability guarantee for the constitutional order in a state.