Abstract: The author considers that implementation of legislatively enshrined functions by any government body or official may be evaluated from the standpoints of efficiency, propensity for corruption, constitutional lawfulness. Their evaluation as unsatisfactory causes responsibility. That is why, it is reasonable to raise an issue of parliamentary responsibility, while the specific feature of this body is that it is a national people representation institution. Inefficient parliamentary work causes serious, and sometimes irreversible social consequences. The article contains analysis of the constitutional mechanism for dissolving the State Duma by the President of the Russian Federation. The author evaluates the opinions of the scholars on whether dissolution of the lower chamber of parliament is a legal responsibility measure. The author concludes that the representative nature of parliament presupposes its responsibility to the people itself, and not to the President of the Russian Federation. The grounds for dissolution of the State Duma are not related to constitutional offences, and its dissolution does not lead to disqualification of the deputies, they are not losing their passive electoral right. That is why the author evaluates dissolution of the State Duma as a political sanction, which is legally based upon the relevant norms of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. The author also analyzes the attempts of judicial evaluation of the constitutional legal issues of obliging the parliament to view the legislative draft and violations of parliamentary procedures. The author raises the issue of parliament responsibility for the legislative policy, and she turns to the issue of the untimely filling of the gap, which was formed after the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation recognized the legislative norms unconstitutional. In order to overcome this problem, the author offers to provide the President of the Russian Federation with the right for the operative regulation in order to implement the decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation and fill the gap. Once the relevant Federal Law is passed, the Decree of the President should be repealed.

Keywords: parliament, responsibility, dissolution, political, court, legal draft, sanction, representative, gap, chamber.

Abstract: The article is devoted to the problem of contents and status of emergency law as an element within the system of Russian law. The author discusses specific features of emergency law as a specific legal institution. In his opinion the principles of emergency law, as provided for in the legislation on emergency situations, may have restraining value. Additionally, in the article emergency law is analyzed in its subjective aspect as legally provided ability of state government bodies to take emergency measures in the crisis situations, and in its objective aspect as a universal complex legal institution, regulating by specific legal means the relations appearing in the conditions of emergency situations. The author analyzes emergency law as a legal institution, and he makes a conclusion that this is not a standard legal institution, and rather a peculiar exclusive legal matter.

Keywords: emergency legal regulation, emergency legal regime, emergency law, extraordinary legal regime, emergency law institution, emergency situations, emergency, emergency measures, functions of emergency law, specific features of emergency law.

Abstract: Attracting large-scale foreign investments into its economy is one of the key goals of any state. Dynamic an efficient development of economy of any state much depend on an amount of foreign investments. In this article the author analyzes the institutions of the Russian Federation responsible for attracting foreign investments and improvement of the investment climate. The article contains detailed analysis of the competence and obligations of the Government of the Russian Federation in the sphere of international investment cooperation. The author describes the factors, on which a decision of a potential investor on an amount of investment depends, resulting in his evaluation of the correlation of the risks of investment and profits. The article also provides information on the Foreign Investment Advisory Council (FIAC), which is the body formed in order to guarantee and implement consecutive and coordinated state policy in the sphere of attracting foreign investments into the economy of the Russian Federation. The article includes information on its structure, renewal of the Council, its current composition, procedure for the formation of the working groups. Analysis of the institutional basis of the Russian Federation in the sphere of investment cooperation shows active participation of the state bodies in this sphere. Generally, one may state that the economic situation in Russia is currently beneficial for the long-term investments, and the measures are taken in order to stimulate investment processes.

Keywords: investments, Government, economy, international, investment, FIAC, Russia, foreign, cooperation, investor.

Abstract: The article is devoted to theoretical and practical aspects of legal guarantees of state control over the efficiency of use of its property situated in the territories of the foreign states. The article includes analysis of the legal position of the property administration subjects for the property of the Russian Federation abroad, as well as their activities aimed to improve the efficiency of use of such objects. Special attention was paid to the analysis of the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation on the measures for the improvement of the use of the federal property of the Russian Federation, which is situated outside the Russian Federation and which is settled on the federal executive bodies, their representatives, other bodies of the Russian Federations, and state organizations. The main goal of this Decree was to improve economic efficiency of the use of the federal immovable property and to achieve clarity of the property recording system, guarantee its legal protection and transparency of financial streams. The conclusion was then made on the low efficiency of management of immovable property of the state abroad.

Keywords: property, state property, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Federal Property Management Agency, the unitary enterprise, efficiency, administration, diplomatic mission, foreign property, use of state property.

Abstract: The author analyzes international commercial arbitration in Russia as well as the connection between the Russian legal system and the legal systems of other states, which was formed due to its influence. In particular, the article concerns such issues as confidentiality of arbitration proceedings, following the proportionality principle, problems of enforcement of arbitration decisions and formation of an arbitration agreement, as well as nuances of data transfer with the use of modern digital technologies. It is stated that it is typical for the Russian law to follow both public and private rules and norms of international law. In the opinion of the author the situation with the application of international law in the Russian Federation was considerably improved after the Part 3 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation was passed, and the Russian conflict of laws norms on foreign economic deals came into conformance with the modern tendencies of development of the international private law. Nevertheless, the author considers that existing solutions are still far from perfection. Considering that the Russian approach to arbitrability is narrower than it is in a number of other states, there is a possibility that the foreign companies and their representatives shall avoid dispute resolution in Russia. That is, the author considers that the attempts to introduce strict control by state judicial bodies may worsen the position of the Russian companies, having commercial relations with foreign businesses. As a result of the outflow of the international arbitration from Russia due to the strict state policy, the economic situation of enterprises being parties to such disputes shall become worse. It shall lead to worsening of the situation in the national economy as a whole. On the other hand, after Russia has entered the WTO, the relations between the state judicial bodies and international commercial arbitration are being corrected. It allows us to hope to successfully pass another level of changes in the Russian law.

Keywords: jurisprudence, foreign trade, trade dispute, arbitration, international arbitration, arbitration agreement, international commercial dispute, domestic legislation, international treaty, unification of law.

Abstract: The goal of this article is to follow the evolution of the election bodies in Russia and to find the optimum legal status for their future. The elections in the Ancient Russia, at the time of formation of a centralized Russian state, at the time of the estate representative monarchy were self-organized and were rather weakly controlled by the centralized power. At the time of absolutism the elective element within the public power was weakened. At the time of the rule of Catherine the II, the election procedures gained more detail, and the election system for the city government was formed. During the reforms of the second half of the XIX century, the Russian election law was formed and the election process was guaranteed by the administrative bodies. The system of independent election commissions was formed for the elections to the Constituent Assembly in 1917. In the Soviet period the election commissions did not have any real powers, due to the lack of political competition within the state and non-alternative structure of elections. In the modern Russia the system of election commission remained and their authority gained recognition. In fact they are public bodies, but they are not included into any of the branches of the power, and they are not “election power” either. The author offers to single out the functions of organization of the election process and holding voting. The first function should be transferred to the executive branch of government as a specialized federal service. Voting should be held based on self-organization of electors within the framework of independent social bodies – district election commissions.

Keywords: elections, election bodies, election commissions, self-organization of electors, veche, electoral power, separation of powers, freedom of election, election rights, democracy.

Abstract: The article is devoted to the study of the criminal law guarantees of substance turnover within the framework of international law (conventional) obligations of a state and law-making traditions in the sphere of health safety of the population. The substance turnover is recognized as an element to a factor complex, which expresses itself by formation and development of illnesses and other harmful consequences, which are dangerous for life or health of persons. The author analyses the entire list of substances, which may be objects of crimes, as provided for in the Special Part of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Taking psychoactive substance under Chapter 25 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation as an example, the author follows the history of development of criminal legislation in the sphere of public health safety in the international legal and comparative legal contexts, and shows the contradictions within the spheres of criminal legal regulation of the public health protection, which inevitable appeared and continued to express themselves when the generally recognized terms of international law were not implemented. Based upon a retrospective analysis of the definition-related specific features of psychoactive drugs, the author expresses an opinion on the need to create a theory of criminal law classification of substance harmful to the population, where one of the criteria for this group should be psychoactive nature of a substance.

Keywords: precursor, intoxicating substances, psychoactive substances, psychedelic substances, analogues to narcotic substances, narcotic substances, illegal turnover, public health, criminal policy

Abstract: The article is devoted to the process of transformation of the political leadership in the Federal Republic of Germany at the verge of XX – XXI centuries. The author departed from the traditional institutional approach, which is limited within the constitutional framework of powers of the Bundeskanzler. Instead, we turned to comparative analysis based on a number of criteria, allowing to follow the dynamics of the political leadership in the FRG at the verge of XX – XXI centuries. The object of studies included political leadership of the Kanzlers H. Kohl and A.Merkel. The choice is due to the following circumstances: firstly, they are among the most popular politicians in the modern Germany, and secondly, they have been Kanzlers for a rather long period of time, while a number of social and economic processes took place in Germany. During the study we made the conclusion that there is a transfer from a traditional (dominating) to a new (consolidating) type of leadership.

Keywords: political leadership, Angela Merkel, Helmut Kohl, the Federal Republic of Germany, elections to the Bundestag, Christian Democratic Union, political processes, image, leading style, political parties.

Abstract: Currently the analysis of the “soft power” factor in the foreign policy of the modern nation states becomes an extremely topical issue. Today the American political leaders consider introduction of the new high-hume administration standards to be a foreign policy priority. As a result, the US actively forms high-hume knowledge and cognition systems, which become one of the key elements of the “soft power” of the USA, making it a highly intellectual system for the manipulation of its own population and select foreign target audiences in its own national interests. The USA made foreign political propaganda an important means to construe human minds at almost any global location. In this sense the “soft power” of the USA aimed to promote the American values and world views became an actively used political instrument, influencing the actors of international relations.

Keywords: international relations, politics, the USA, soft power, political instability, diplomacy, interests, values, security, cooperation.

Abstract: The article is devoted to the topical issue of audit development at the current stage within the framework of membership of Russia in the EurAsEC and the Customs Union. The author evaluates specific features of definition apparatus in the audit sphere, and singles out specific features of obligatory audit regulation, as well as the problems related to unification of national legislations of the Member States to the EurAsEC and the Customs Union, then she formulates the propositions for their improvement. Much attention is paid to audit of the foreign official supervision system as means to guarantee due security level of the goods imported to the territory of the Customs Union. Analysis of various normative acts of the Member States of the EurAsEc and the Customs Union allowed the author to make a conclusion that audit is one of efficient means of influence on economic development, however, the normative basis in this sector is not completely formed, and it needs further improvement with active cooperation of the EurAsEc and the Customs Union Member States.

Keywords: audit, EurAsEC, the Customs Union, obligatory audit, supervision system, product security, unification, inspection, field audit, standard.

Abstract: The article is devoted to the problems of recognition and compulsory enforcement of the foreign judicial decisions in the Republic of Turkey. This problem remain topical in spite of the codification of international private law, which took place in Turkey in 2007. It is undoubted, that due to the development of international connection and trade turnover, the Turkish courts need to recognize and enforce foreign judicial decisions more and more often, so they form certain judicial practice on this issue. However, the study shows, that this practice has been inconsistent, which is probably due to the lack of experience of the Turkish courts. The analysis of the current judicial practice of the higher judicial instances with references to their legal positions and analysis of application of the foreign law by the Turkish courts would allow to make further judicial practice more unified and lower the risk of judicial errors. As a result of the studies, the author draws a conclusion that the formal approach of the Turkish courts, lack of clear reference points and guidelines of the higher judicial bodies preclude the Turkish legal practitioners from unifying judicial practice on this issue.

Keywords: international private law, international civil process, the Republic of Turkey, recognition of judicial decisions, compulsory enforcement, codification, conflict of laws norms, applicable law, establishing legal norms, public order violations.

Abstract: This article is devoted to the evaluation of the modern unification processes in the sphere of international private river law, regulating transportation of goods, passengers and luggage in the international river transportation communication. The international private river law is a branch of international transportation law, which is a combination of norms of national and international character, regulating international transportation relations. International river transportation of goods, passengers and luggage are made based on contracts between carriers and shippers or passengers. The authors of this article provide detailed analysis of the norms of two key international treaties in the sphere of river transportation: the Budapest Convention of 2001 on the Contract for the Carriage of Goods by Inland Waterway, and the Geneva Convention of 1976 on the Contract for the International Carriage of Passengers and Luggage by Inland Waterway. The authors analyze international norms regarding carriage of goods, passengers and luggage, as well as responsibility of the international river transportation carrier, extrajudicial settlement procedure, limitation periods and grounds for addressing judicial or arbitration conflict resolution means.

Keywords: international transportation law, international river transportation, international treaties, national legislation, goods, passengers, luggage, carrier, limits to responsibility, prejudicial claim.

Abstract: This article is devoted to the issues of correlation between recognition of the new states and the UN membership. The author evaluates the provisions of the UN Charter and other normative acts, as well as the international judicial decisions. In particular, he analyzes the decision of the International Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), showing that the UN membership equals recognition of a subject as new state, as well as that the subject having the UN membership, while not being de facto independent (sovereign), can be recognized as a state due to its membership in this organization. In the opinion of the author such an approach is not realistic, since it contradicts the existing practice. The author defines recognition of one state by the other as an act of political will and expression of sovereignty of a recognizing state, since it remains in the total discretion of a recognizing state, while the UN membership is a legal act. The author points out a number of reasons for which the UN membership cannot be equal to the collective recognition of a new state by the UN Member States.

Keywords: definition of a state, accepting practice, the UN Member States, recognition of new states, the UN General Assembly, the UN Security Council, the UN Charter, procedural rules, international law, foreign policy.

Abstract: The current period of development of constitutional legal relations is characterized by greater interest to implementation of reporting of executive bodies to the parliament bodies of the constituent subjects of the Russian Federation. The article contains analysis of reporting within the traditional spheres of activity, as well as analysis of a novel parliamentary control form being an annual report by a highest official of a constituent subject of the Russian Federation based upon the results of the work of executive bodies, including the issues raised by a regional parliament. The goal of the article was to uncover the gaps and defects of federal and regional legislation regulating order and specific features of reporting by the executive bodies of the constituent subjects to the legislative bodies. The author makes a conclusion that the legal norms on annual reports by the highest officials of constituent subjects of the Russian Federation are not correct. In the opinion of the author the list of issues on which the heads of the regional executive power report should be established by the Constitutions and the Ustavs of the constituent subjects of the Russian Federation. The author also considers that relevant amendments should be introduced into the Federal Law “On the general principles of organization of the legislative (representative) and executive bodies of the state government of the constituent subjects of the Russian Federation”, Constitutions and Ustavs of the constituent subjects of the Russian Federation.

Keywords: jurisprudence, report, control, parliament, power, constituent subject, budget, program, property, fund.

Abstract: The specific feature of the modern global order is the transfer or disease incidence from infectious to non-infectious pathology, which is much due to a number of risk factors, one of which is unhealthy diet. Since the changes in the diet are due to global cultural processes, attempts to solve this problem at a national level faces considerable difficulties. That is why, the European Union actively pays attention to healthy diet and nutrition. The goal of this article is analyze legal and organizational measures taken at the Community level in order to make the diet of the population healthier. The article includes detailed analysis of priority directions of the EU policy in the sphere of healthy nutrition, including consumer information, access to healthy choice, support of physical activities, and attention to priority groups. The author studies main legal and political documents, as well as legal and health cared doctrines, including opinions of legal scholars and health care officials on this issue.

Keywords: medicine, the European law, health cared, health, nutrition, the European Union, healthy diet, healthy nutrition, noninfectious diseases, prophylactics.

Abstract: The article provides the author’s concept of correlation between constitutional and criminal judicial procedures, aimed to guarantee efficient, realistic and timely judicial protection of rights and freedoms. The special legal methodology for the concept was the doctrine of judicial law, which is a currently reviving general legal universal theory of judicial power and procedural law, and from its standpoint the process in law (legal process) is judicial procedure, and the “broad” understanding of procedural law is wrongful. The nature of correlation among the various types of judicial procedure (inter-procedural connections) is due to the very nature of judicial procedure, which is regarded at the same time as a mechanism for implementation of judicial power, implementation of law and a complicated social system. The interrelation between various types of judicial procedure is mutual and direct influence of process and (or) results of two types of judicial procedure. It is due to material legal and procedural information prerequisites (factors). The study of correlation between types of judicial procedure is taken through the consistent characterizing of the forms of such interrelation. The article defines the structure for the interrelation, including vector of influence, basis, consequences and terms of interrelation. The article singles out and describes the forms of interrelation between constitutional and criminal judicial procedures, including initiating, preventive, prejudicial, normative correcting, normative interpretive, revision one, and the author defines the perspectives for the improvement of their legal regulation.

Keywords: judicial law, interrelation between types of judicial procedure, Constitutional Court, judicial process, correction of legal norms, interpretation of law, request by a court, claim by a citizen, renewing judicial procedure, prejudicial.

Abstract: The aim of the article is to study role and place of legal customs in daily life and legal relationships of Russian villagers during the modernization era. The research includes the analysis of law and common law ratio in treatment of crime, its motives and nature of punishment for an offense. The work contains the analysis of peasants’ legal customs specifics in the field of property crimes. The research is made on the basis of interdisciplinary approach using a wide range of ethnographic sources. The author reveals the content of peasants’ legal views and the features of common law application in Russian villagers’ daily life. As a result of the conducted research it is determined that legal customs regulated villagers’ public relations and acted as the basis for rural district courts’ solutions. Their existing in the rural daily life was the result of both government sanction and peasants’ mentality features.

Keywords: customary law, Russian peasants, rural everyday life, law, property crimes, volost court, legal conscience, peasant community, legal customs, punishment.

Abstract: The article concerns the early period of formation and establishment of the Muslim justice and statehood, it includes analysis of the key sources of the Muslim law and all elements of development of the Muslim judicial system and judiciary throughout the period of existence of the largest and most influential early Muslim state– the Arabian Caliphate. The article provides detailed analysis of the epoch of the rule of the direct successors of the Prophet – the righteous Caliphs, of whom special attention is paid to the rule and important judicial reforms of the second caliph Omar. The next epoch of the Muslim judicial system and judiciary is related to the first caliph dynasty – the Umayyads. During their rule the institution of professional Muslim judges (qadi) was formed. The further development takes place when the Abbasids come to power in the Caliphate. The author analyzes the basis for judicial process in the Arabian Caliphate, strong and weak features of the qadi courts within the context of formation of “complaint ministry” as an independent judicial institution. In the final part of the article the author formulates a conclusion on the possibility for the use of some rules used in the Arabian Caliphate in the modern judicial systems.

Keywords: Muslim law, judicial system, judiciary, Caliphate, Muslim schools of law, mazhab, qadi, the Shariat, the righteous Caliphs.

Abstract: The article concerns the key approaches to the issue of provision of the legal status to the entrepreneurial subjects in global and Russian practice in various historical epochs (from the time of Ancient Rome to the current time). Much attention is paid to the Russian experience of making entrepreneurial subjects legitimate. Within the framework of this study the author studies the factors influencing the formation of rules for achieving collective and individual entrepreneurial status, key tendencies of development of the legal regulation. It was established that consequent liberalization of the procedure for making legal entities legitimate is a governing tendency within the global practice. The article also includes evaluation of the latest amendments in the registration procedure for legal entities in Russia from the standpoint of the above-mentioned pattern. The author considers that it is not viable for Russia to use the experience of foreign states, where persons gain status of entrepreneurs due to the very fact of performing entrepreneurial activities without special registration.

Keywords: making entrepreneurial subjects legitimate, appearance of corporations, permissive system, formation of corporation without licensing or registration required for their validity, freedom of association, merchants guild, doing trade, state registration, formation of legal entities, registration of individual entrepreneurs.

Abstract: The article attempts to provide criminal law evaluation of the unlawful seizure of the capital assets belonging to the housing owners, members of the housing (housing construction) partnerships and cooperatives in the apartment buildings. The issue concerns the common property of housing owners, as well as of funds transferred by the residents for the repairs, management and maintenance of the apartment building. The author finds these processes to possess elements of raiding (hostile takeover). From this standpoint he evaluates the current situation in this sphere. The article contains references to several crimes, which such unlawful obtainment of property of housing owners may constitute. Additionally, the author points out practical and statistic problems in this sphere. In the final part of the article the author draws a conclusion that it is necessary to take a number of measures in order to protect the interests of the housing owners in the apartment buildings, for example, by quality monitoring of criminal encroachments on the relations regarding management of apartment buildings.

Keywords: law, housing partnership, the Housing Code, the housing and utilities infrastructure, hostile takeover, raiding, protocol, general assembly, housing, takeover.

Abstract: The article is devoted to the methodological problems of political sciences. Based on an example of the polemics between Leo Strauss and Alexander Kozhev, the author shows the key working methods of modern researchers, and their weak spots. The author also provides analysis of the causes of the problems and potentially productive options for their resolution. The author takes the development of economic sciences as a reference point. The political science has been institutionalized only recently, and it still uses the philosophical vocabulary, that is why its achievements sound archaic compared to achievements of other humanities. The lacking involvement of mathematics, neurosciences, statistics, etc. causes loss and stagnation of knowledge. The typical thesis on power written in the early XXI century rarely differs from the theses, which appeared two to four centuries ago. Esoteric and philosophic tendencies are being criticized as harmful and thwarting further progress.

Keywords: literature, criticism, statistics, knowledge, cognition, development of science, methodology, power, philosophy, politics, interdisciplinary studies.

Abstract: This article is devoted to the views of the Russian lawyers on definition and goals of punishment, as expressed in their theses. The object of study includes theoretical concepts, ideas, legal constructions, which are devoted to punishment, its nature, goals and influence, as provided for in the dissertation theses on criminal law, presented at the Law faculties of the Universities of the Russian Empire in XIX and early XX centuries. The goal of the article is to analyze evolution of the Russian doctrine on punishment, as reflected in dissertation theses on criminal law presented at the Law faculties of the Universities of the Russian Empire in XIX and early XX centuries. The methodological basis for the study includes three groups of methods: general methods, general scientific methods, and special legal methods. The article evaluates the process of formation and development of the Russian teachings on criminal punishment, as reflected in the dissertation theses at the Universities of the Russian Empire. The results of the studies may be used in scientific work on formation and development of the Russian legal doctrine, criminal law, theory and history of state and law.

Keywords: dissertation studies, goals of punishment, Universities, punishment, criminal law, definition of punishment, the Russian Empire, doctrine, teaching, scientific studies.

Abstract: The article is devoted to the roots of constitutional process in Russia and the historical paradigms of the Russian Constitutionalism. The authors analyze the views of various Russian scientists on the ideas of Constitutionalism in various historic periods, provide analysis and classification of such views. The authors single out and provide detailed analysis of two main forms: Constitutionalism, which politically and legally limits the supreme power, and Constitutionalism, which is based on trust to the supreme power. The authors analyze evolution of dualistic and triadic models of Constitutionalism in the Russian thought, and provide detailed descriptions of original liberal, conservative and radical concepts, paying special attention to the differences in their axiological bases. The authors prove that the current Russian Constitution is a result of the reasonable compromise among various social values, directly referring to the basic principles of the Constitutionalism. It enshrines both liberal values of natural rights and freedoms of person and citizen, doctrine of ruleof- law state, separation of powers, democracy and civil society, and conservative elements for unity and sovereignty of the strong Russian statehood, while supporting the principle of federalism and historic tradition of the people.

Keywords: Russia, Constitution, constitutional process, Constitutionalism, liberalism, conservative, state, supreme power, law, philosophy of law.