NLA is an official, written document issued by a state body, within the established competence, aimed at introducing legal norms, changing existing ones, or their abolition. This document is always addressed to a personally indefinite circle of people. A normative legal act in most states serves as the main source and form of law. This form of law is typical for Russia and most European countries. The following features are characteristic of normative legal acts:
1) They come only from government bodies specifically authorized for this purpose;
2) there is a special procedure for their acceptance;
3) a written form and special design are used;
4) hierarchical subordination, based on the different legal force of individual acts;
5) the content of regulatory legal acts consists of rules of law.
Normative legal acts can be issued not by any state bodies and officials, but only by those specifically authorized by the state for this type of activity. All regulatory legal acts are of a state nature, i.e. They are generally binding; special requirements are imposed on their content and action.
It should, however, be borne in mind that there are acts of state bodies that are not normative in nature. For example, the President of the Russian Federation has the right to issue not only normative decrees containing rules of conduct, but also non-normative decrees, in particular, on the appointment of a specific person to the position of minister or ambassador, on awarding an order or conferring a military or honorary title. Acts of a non-normative nature are addressed to an individually determined person (Ivanov I.I., Petrov A.N., etc.), are issued on the basis of existing rules of law and do not establish new rules.
Regulatory legal acts, depending on their legal force, the body that adopted them, and the method of adoption, are divided into two large groups: laws and by-laws.
Laws are adopted by representative (legislative) bodies, by-laws - by all other authorized bodies and officials, most often by executive authorities. In modern Russia, judicial bodies do not have the right to adopt normative legal acts. They only have the right to apply or interpret already existing rules of law.
A law is a normative legal act that has the highest legal force and is adopted by representative (legislative) bodies of state power in a special manner. (Example of law - Constitution, Criminal Code, Civil Code, Railway Charter).
This form is used to regulate the most important relations for the life of society. The law has the highest legal force. It follows that the law has the following features:
1) this is an act of representative (legislative) bodies of state power or an act adopted by popular vote (referendum);
2) it regulates the most important social relations, for example, the rights and obligations of the individual, property relations, the structure of the state, etc.;
3) the law is adopted according to a special procedure called the legislative process;
4) has supremacy in the legal system of the state.
The supremacy of law, its supreme legal force, means that when a new law is adopted, all other legal acts must be brought into compliance with the law, and in case of contradiction with the law, any act can be protested or canceled. The law is always normative, since it contains rules of law, and in this way it differs from declarations, appeals and other acts adopted by representative bodies of government.
Among laws, the constitution has the highest legal force; the fundamental law has the highest legal force and is the basis for all other laws. The current Constitution of the Russian Federation was adopted by the people through a referendum (popular vote) on December 12, 1993. No act of the state can contradict the Constitution; its norms always take precedence over the norms of other acts.
Laws are divided into constitutional and ordinary (current). Constitutional laws are those laws the adoption of which is provided for in the text of the constitution itself. This is enshrined in Art. 108 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. An example of a federal constitutional law is the law on the judicial system, since Part 3 of Art. 118 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation provides that the judicial system of the Russian Federation is established by federal constitutional law. In the Russian Constitution they are called federal constitutional laws. In the constitutions of other states, for example, Spain, France, they are called organic. These laws have the following features:
1) they have higher legal force compared to ordinary laws;
2) are adopted in a special manner - by a qualified majority, i.e. pre-established increased voting quorum. In Russia, for example, at least 2/3 of the deputies of the State Duma and 3/4 of the members of the Federation Council from their list must vote for a federal constitutional law. While a simple majority of votes in both houses (50% plus one vote) is sufficient to pass an ordinary law;
3) The head of state does not have the right of veto over constitutional laws, but must, after a certain period of time (in Russia - within 14 days), sign the law and promulgate it.
Current (ordinary) laws are federal laws that are adopted on the basis and in pursuance of the Constitution and constitutional laws. They regulate various aspects of the economic, social, political and cultural life of the country.
Among the federal constitutional laws mentioned in the Russian Constitution, similar laws have already been adopted and are in force - on the Government of the Russian Federation, on the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, on the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation, on the Judicial System of the Russian Federation, etc. Laws on the state of emergency, on martial law, about the anthem, flag, coat of arms of Russia and a number of others.
Codified laws are also a special type - these are large acts designed to comprehensively regulate a certain area of public life. These include the fundamentals of legislation and codes for various branches of legislation. An example is the Fundamentals of Legislation on Notaries in the Russian Federation and the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
All laws, regardless of their nature, are subject to promulgation and publication.
There is a constitutional rule that unpublished laws cannot be applied.
Subordinate regulatory legal acts at the federation level include:
1. resolutions adopted by the chambers of the Federal Assembly, the State Duma and the Federation Council;
regulatory decrees of the President of the Russian Federation. These include only those decrees that contain rules of conduct of a general nature (i.e., rules of law), since the President of the Russian Federation, according to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, can also adopt decrees that are not normative legal acts, because they are of an individual nature. For example, a Decree on pardoning a specific person sentenced by a court to capital punishment is not a normative legal act, since it does not contain rules of law. And the decree on increasing the amount of pensions or benefits is a normative legal act, so it is designed for repeated application to everyone who receives pensions or benefits;
3. resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation, which regulate relations in various sectors of public and state life;
4. regulatory orders and instructions of ministries, state committees and other federal departments.
They cannot contradict the Constitution and laws. Subordinate regulatory legal acts are also adopted by other state bodies - the government, local government bodies and other bodies. They also cannot contradict the Constitution, laws and presidential decrees and are issued strictly within their competence. The legality of such acts is verified in court, and they are supervised by the prosecutor's office, i.e. she can protest them (except for government acts, which can only be repealed by the President).
By-laws also include acts of central executive authorities - ministries, state committees, federal services, as well as acts of heads of local administrations and executive bodies of constituent entities of the Federation.
Any regulatory legal acts affecting the rights, freedoms and responsibilities of man and citizen must be published for public information, otherwise they cannot be applied.
All other forms (sources) of law are classified as so-called non-legislative. That is, they are not formed by special legislative bodies of the state.
In order to correctly resolve specific legal cases, you need to know the rules for the operation of normative legal acts in time, space and among persons. Determining how a normative act operates over time means that it is necessary to establish from what moment it begins to operate and when its effect ceases. This procedure is established by a special federal law. There are several options for the entry into force of regulatory legal acts. For the most important and major laws, the rule is that the law comes into force from the moment established in a special resolution or in the law itself. For example, the new Criminal Code of the Russian Federation was adopted by the Federal Assembly in the summer of 1996, and came into force on January 1, 1997. Several months between adoption and entry into force are necessary to ensure that everyone can become familiar with the contents of the new Code.
If the moment of entry into force of the law is not specifically established, then it begins to take effect 10 days after its first official publication in the “Rossiyskaya Gazeta”, “Parliamentary Gazette” or “Collection of Legislation of the Russian Federation”. Regulatory decrees of the President of the Russian Federation begin to take effect 7 days after publication, but sometimes they can come into force from the moment of publication or even signing by the President. Decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation come into force from the date of their signing, but some of them affecting the rights, freedoms and responsibilities of citizens - after 7 days after publication.
Annex 1
In the field of legal activity and legal informatization, the term “legal information” is widely used. Legal information includes, first of all, legal acts, as well as all information that is related to law: materials on the preparation of bills and other normative legal acts, their discussion and adoption, recording and streamlining, interpretation and implementation of legal norms, studying the practice of their application. Legal information also includes materials on legal education and the development of scientific concepts for the development of law.
Based on the above, legal information can be defined as an array of legal acts and closely related reference, regulatory, technical and scientific materials covering all areas of legal activity.
Legal information, depending on who is its “author”, that is, from whom it comes and what it is aimed at, can be divided into three large groups: official legal information, information of an individual legal nature that has legal significance, and unofficial legal information. information.
Official legal information is information emanating from authorized state bodies, having legal significance and aimed at regulating public relations.
Information of an individual legal nature that has legal significance is information emanating from various subjects of law who do not have power and aimed at creating (changing, terminating) specific legal relations.
Unofficial legal information is materials and information about legislation and the practice of its implementation (application), which do not entail legal consequences and ensure the effective implementation of legal norms.
Let's look at these groups in more detail.
1. Official legal information
Official legal information, in turn, is divided into regulatory legal information and other official legal information.
1.1. Regulatory information
The normative part of legal information, which forms its core, is a set of normative legal acts (hereinafter referred to as NLA) in all their diversity and dynamics.
A normative legal act is a written official document adopted (issued) in a certain form by a law-making body within its competence and aimed at establishing, amending and repealing legal norms. A normative legal act can be either a permanent or temporary act, designed for a clearly established period, determined by a specific date or the occurrence of a particular event.
In turn, a legal norm is usually understood as a generally binding state regulation of a permanent or temporary nature, designed for repeated use (Resolution of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of November 11, 1996 N 781-II GD).
Thus, the rule of law is not designed for any specific case or circumstance, but for one or another type of cases, circumstances, determined by some general feature, and thus the rule of law is designed for a certain category, type of social relations. Rules of law represent general, typical behaviors.
A rule of law is distinguished from legal regulations of a non-normative nature by the following specific features:
- 1) repeated application (that is, a rule of law does not lose force after a single application, but is in effect constantly and is designed to be implemented whenever the circumstances provided for by this rule are present. It is not limited to a single application);
- 2) non-personalization (that is, the norm extends its effect not to individually defined subjects, but, as a rule, to a circle of persons, bodies, organizations united by some common characteristic (occupation, gender, residence in a certain territory, etc. )).
Both features of a legal norm should be taken in unity, and the first feature is of primary importance, since it directly reflects the focus of the norm on regulating a certain type of relationship, establishing a measure of behavior.
The rule of law concerns:
- a) a circle of government bodies, organizations, institutions;
- b) circle of officials;
- c) all citizens or some category of them, determined by one or another common characteristic (military personnel, pensioners, employees of any branch of the economy, etc.);
- d) one or another specific government body, institution, organization, regardless of their personnel (definition of general powers);
- e) a specific official (President of the Russian Federation, Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, etc.) regardless of who personally holds the corresponding position.
The legal force of a normative legal act is the property of the act to give rise to certain legal consequences. The legal force of an act indicates the place of the act in the system of legal acts and depends on the position and competence of the body that issued the act.
A characteristic feature of the system of legal acts is its hierarchical structure, according to which each act occupies its own step on the hierarchical ladder and is subordinate to other acts, that is, the relationship of acts is characterized by the supremacy of some acts over others. Acts have unequal legal force, depending on the place of the body that issued it in the system of state bodies and its competence. Acts of higher authorities have greater legal force, acts of lower authorities must be issued in accordance with them, since they have less legal force.
In accordance with their legal force, regulatory legal acts are divided into laws (laws of the Russian Federation and laws of constituent entities of the Russian Federation), by-laws, international treaties and agreements, and domestic treaties.
Laws
Laws of the Russian Federation are normative legal acts adopted by referendum or by the legislative body of the Russian Federation and regulating the most significant social relations.
The Constitution of the Russian Federation, adopted by popular vote, has the highest legal force. Being a law, the Constitution of the Russian Federation is the legal basis of the legislation of the Russian Federation. All other laws and other legal acts adopted in the Russian Federation must not contradict the Constitution of the Russian Federation.
The laws of the Russian Federation are adopted in the form:
- - laws of the Russian Federation on amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation;
- - federal constitutional laws;
- - federal laws (including codes).
Federal constitutional laws cannot contradict the Constitution of the Russian Federation. Federal laws cannot contradict not only the Constitution of the Russian Federation, but also federal constitutional laws.
The laws also include the constitutions of the republics that are part of the Russian Federation, the charters of other constituent entities of the Russian Federation, as well as laws adopted by the legislative bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
Regulations
By-laws are normative legal acts issued on the basis and in pursuance of laws. They can specify the norms of laws, interpret them or establish new norms, but at the same time they must comply with and not contradict the laws. By-laws are a means of implementing legislative norms.
They, in turn, are also divided into several types depending on the position and competence of the body that issued the by-law, and also have a hierarchical structure. The leading role in the system of by-laws of the Russian Federation belongs to acts of the President of the Russian Federation.
Acts of the President of the Russian Federation are adopted in the form of decrees and orders and cannot contradict the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the laws of the Russian Federation. Regulatory legal acts of the President are adopted, as a rule, in the form of decrees.
Acts of the Government of the Russian Federation are adopted in the form of resolutions and orders that cannot contradict the Constitution of the Russian Federation, laws of the Russian Federation, or acts of the President of the Russian Federation. Acts of the Government of the Russian Federation have greater force in relation to acts of federal executive authorities and acts of local authorities. Regulatory legal acts of the Government are adopted, as a rule, in the form of resolutions.
Acts of federal executive authorities (so-called departmental acts) are issued on the basis of and in pursuance of not only the Constitution of the Russian Federation, laws of the Russian Federation, presidential decrees, but also decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation. By-laws of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation have their own hierarchical structure and apply to all persons and other subjects of law located on the territory of the corresponding constituent entity of the Russian Federation.
International treaties
An international treaty is a normative legal act regulating the relations of the Russian Federation with a foreign state or international organization.
In accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, international treaties of the Russian Federation are an integral part of its legal system. If an international treaty of the Russian Federation establishes rules other than those provided for by law, then the rules of the international treaty apply.
Domestic treaties
An internal agreement is a normative legal act regulating relations between the Russian Federation and the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, as well as between various constituent entities of the Russian Federation on issues of mutual interest to the parties (delimitation of jurisdiction and powers between the Russian Federation and the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, joint activities in the economic field, etc.). P.).
1.2. Other official legal information
Other (non-normative) official legal information may include:
- - non-normative acts of a general nature;
- - acts of official clarification;
- - law enforcement acts.
Acts of a general nature, while not being normative, create a series of legal relations; many subjects participate in their execution, but they are limited to a one-time execution (decision to carry out preventive vaccinations, to build a plant, etc.). Such acts are adopted by authorized state bodies.
Acts of official clarification of current norms are acts of interpretation of the Constitution of the Russian Federation by the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, guiding clarifications of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, the Plenum of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation, etc. There is no consensus of opinion on the issue of the legal nature of these acts in the scientific literature. Some authors classify acts of official clarification as acts of interpretation that do not contain new norms, while others classify them as normative legal acts. At the same time, the real significance of these acts in ensuring the uniform application of laws in judicial practice is not questioned.
Law enforcement acts are individual legal acts adopted by legislative and executive authorities, judicial and prosecutorial authorities, state inspectorates, etc. They do not apply to any person, body, organization (as a normative act), but to a specific, specific subject of legal relations regulated by this act (court verdict, decision to grant a pension, order of the director of an enterprise on dismissal, Decree of the President of the Russian Federation on the appointment of a minister etc.).
1.3. Forms of legal acts
There is a dependence of the form of the act on its normative content.
Legal acts are adopted (issued) in the form of laws, decrees, regulations, orders, orders, rules, instructions, regulations. The procedure for preparing regulatory legal acts of federal executive authorities is regulated by current legislation. In accordance with the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated August 13, 1997 N 1009 “On approval of the Rules for the preparation of normative legal acts of federal executive bodies and their state registration,” normative legal acts of federal executive bodies are issued only “in the form of resolutions, orders, instructions, rules, instructions and regulations. The publication of normative legal acts in the form of letters and telegrams is not allowed."
However, this rule is sometimes violated in legislative practice. For example, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, by its Order dated September 15, 1997 N 02-395 “On the Regulations of the Bank of Russia “On the procedure for the preparation and entry into force of regulations of the Bank of Russia” (clause 1.5 of the Regulations), determines the list of forms in which regulations of the Bank of Russia can be issued : instruction, provision, instruction. This contradicts the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation N 1009 regarding the attribution of instructions to the form of a regulatory legal act. In accordance with Article 6 of the Federal Law “On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation”, regulatory acts of the Bank of Russia affecting rights, freedoms or obligations citizens are subject to registration with the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation in the manner established for registration of regulatory legal acts of federal ministries and departments.
The Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation in the “Explanations on the application of the Rules for the preparation of normative legal acts of federal executive bodies and their state registration”, approved by Order No. 42 dated April 17, 1998, emphasizes that from the date of entry into force of the Government of the Russian Federation Resolution No. 1009, normative legal acts of federal executive bodies are issued only in the form of decrees, orders, regulations, rules, instructions and regulations. Acts issued in a different form (for example, instructions) should not be of a normative legal nature.
Non-normative acts are issued in a variety of forms. However, you should pay attention to the following. According to the established position, if acts are issued in the form of laws, rules, instructions, regulations, then they are normative. However, there are exceptions to this rule. So, in 1994 - 1996. non-normative acts were adopted in a form traditionally inherent only to normative acts, namely: 9 laws were adopted regulating material support and medical care for individual families of deceased deputies. These laws are individual legal acts and are not normative in nature, since they are personalized. Legal theory has a negative attitude towards the practice of issuing such acts in the form of laws.
2. Information of an individual legal nature,
having legal significance
This type of legal information differs from official legal information in that it comes not from authorized state bodies, but from various subjects of law who do not have power - citizens, organizations.
Legal information of an individual legal nature that has legal significance can be divided into:
- - agreements (transactions);
- - complaints, statements giving rise to legal consequences.
Common features of these acts:
- - are of an individual legal nature;
- - aimed at creating (changing, terminating) specific legal relations.
A specific supply agreement is concluded between two specific organizations, entails certain legal consequences - it establishes the rights and obligations of the parties to the agreement, and terminates after the terms of the agreement are fulfilled. A claim brought by a specific citizen against a specific organization for a specific reason also gives rise to certain legal consequences.
3. Unofficial legal information
Unofficial legal information, which is materials and information about legislation and the practice of its application, differs from official legal information and legal information of legal significance, primarily in that it does not entail legal consequences. It can be divided into the following groups:
- - materials for the preparation, discussion and adoption of laws and other regulatory legal acts;
- - materials for recording and systematizing legislation (card files for recording normative legal acts, preliminary materials for the preparation of meetings and codes of laws, unofficial collections of normative legal acts, etc.);
- - statistical materials on legal issues (statistical data on the state of crime, offenses, etc.);
- - samples of business papers;
- - comments on legislation;
- - scientific, popular science, educational and other works on legislative issues.
Unofficial legal information, while not being normative and generating legal consequences, is nevertheless important for the effective implementation of legal norms. Thus, the opinions of famous scientists who comment and explain legislation are of interest to both specialists and the general public and are used in the implementation and application of legal norms.
Legal acts- these are official documents of competent government bodies aimed at achieving any legal consequences.
General features of legal acts:
- come from the state and are associated with its powers;
- are binding on the persons to whom they are addressed;
- entail legal consequences, i.e. influence the responsibilities of subjects;
- supported by the power of state coercion.
Types of legal acts depending on the legal consequences generated:
- regulatory legal acts (NLAs) - aimed at establishing, amending or repealing;
- acts of interpretation (interpretative) - aimed at clarifying the rules of law;
- acts of application of law (or law enforcement, individual legal) - aimed at implementing the requirements of legal norms.
It is necessary to strictly distinguish between law enforcement acts, normative acts and acts of interpretation of legal norms.
Regulatory legal act
Regulatory legal act - is a legal act adopted by an authorized body and containing legal norms, i.e. prescriptions of a general nature and permanent action, designed for repeated use.
Regulatory acts are issued by bodies with rule-making competence in a strictly prescribed form. A normative act is an official document, a carrier of legally significant information.
Comment
Regulation of public legal relations by virtue of current legislation cannot be carried out by a legal act in the form of a letter, in the absence of registration of the relevant document and its official publication (see, for example, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated July 16, 2018 N VKAPI18-20 “On invalidating the letter of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation dated April 26, 2007 N 1/3315, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation dated May 2, 2007 N 180/4/1-483, Pension Fund of the Russian Federation dated 05/02/2007 N GB-25-26/4730 "On the form of a certificate issued by those entitled to simultaneously receive two pensions provided for by the Law of the Russian Federation dated 02/12/1993 N 4468-1" ).
By legal force All regulations are divided into two groups:
- laws;
- regulations.
Types of laws
- The Constitution (law of laws) is the fundamental constituent political and legal act that enshrines the constitutional system, the rights and freedoms of man and citizen, determines the form of government and government, and establishes federal government bodies;
- federal constitutional laws- are adopted on issues provided for and organically related to the Constitution of the Russian Federation (for example, federal constitutional laws on arbitration courts, on military courts, on the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, on the judicial system, on referendums, on the Government of Russia, etc.);
- federal laws- these are acts of current legislation devoted to various aspects of the socio-economic, political and spiritual life of society (for example, the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the Family Code of the Russian Federation, etc.);
- laws of the subjects of the Federation- are issued by their representative bodies and their effect extends only to the relevant territory (for example, the law of the Saratov region on municipal service in the Saratov region, on social guarantees, etc.).
Types of by-laws
- decrees of the President of the Russian Federation (the highest legal regulations);
- resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation (acts of the executive body of the state endowed with broad competence to manage social processes);
- orders, instructions, regulations of ministries, departments, state committees (as a rule, they regulate public relations that are within the competence of a given executive structure);
- decisions and regulations of local government bodies;
- decisions, orders, resolutions of local government bodies;
- regulations of municipal authorities;
- local regulations (regulations adopted at the level of a specific enterprise, institution and organization, for example, internal labor regulations).
Enforcement act
Enforcement act - one of the types of legal acts, a well-known official document issued by a competent authority or official on any matter (issue) in relation to a specific subject or subjects based on the relevant legal norm.
The purpose of acts of application of law follows from their name - they are designed to apply legal norms to the relevant persons, but in no case create new norms or change or supplement old ones; this is not their function.
Characteristic features of law enforcement acts:
- have an individually determined character, i.e. refer to specific persons who can be named (for example, a court verdict, an order to dismiss an employee from work, a decree to award a citizen with an order);
- are authoritative and binding, since they come from the state or, with its consent, from public associations, local governments, other structures and entities (delegated powers); Failure to comply with such acts may result in sanctions;
- do not contain legal norms(general rules of conduct), therefore they are not a source and form of law; their purpose is not to create, but to apply rules of law;
- act as legal facts, giving rise to specific legal relations between the one who applies the norm and the one to whom it is applied; Thus, these acts carry out local (casual) legal regulation, specifying general regulations;
- are exhausted by one-time use and do not apply to other situations and other subjects; after a single use they cease their effect;
- provided by state coercion, since we are talking about putting the legislator into action, even if this requires the use of power.
It should be borne in mind that not all official documents represent law enforcement acts (for example, various types of certificates, receipts, invoices, payment orders, diplomas, certificates, diplomas, identity cards, etc.), since they do not fit the the above symptoms. Such “official papers” act as technical and operational means of official relationships between citizens and organizations, as well as the latter among themselves.
A classic law enforcement act (for example, a court verdict) should:
- have the necessary external attributes (requisites), i.e. meet the established rules and requirements (place and time of issue, date, signature, seal, reference to the law, by whom it was issued, etc.);
- have a certain internal structure: a descriptive part, motivational and operative, in which the decision itself is stated. Without some elements of such attributes, the most important act may lose its legal force.
The relationship between regulatory legal and law enforcement acts
Regulatory and individual legal acts are often mixed.
Indeed, they have a lot in common:
- both of them are categorical and authoritative in nature, supported by the power of state coercion to fulfill the instructions contained in them;
- they are published (accepted) by a strictly defined circle of specially authorized persons;
- they have a clear structure and attributes, violation of the requirements of which makes them invalid;
- they directly regulate social relations;
- have the same focus on streamlining relations, strengthening the rule of law and ensuring law and order, etc.
The distinctive features (characteristic features) of the law enforcement act are indicated above.
Throughout the history of its existence, humanity has tried many times to find the most effective regulator of social relations, which could influence all layers of society and each citizen individually. During the search process, various solutions appeared, but all of them did not bring the desired result. But closer to our era, law was invented. In essence, these were moral norms sanctioned by one or another state, principality or other territorial formation, used directly in society.
Such regulations became the prototype of the law that exists today in the sense in which all people understand it. However, of great interest is not only the structure itself in a single state, but also the mechanism for their direct implementation. This process has always been carried out through official orders from the authorities. As a rule, such orders were formalized, or rather, written down in specific documents, which today are called “normative legal acts.” It should be noted that in Russia, like other countries, official documents, in order to ensure the effectiveness of the implementation of their provisions, are included in a single hierarchical structure. It is thanks to the hierarchy of legal acts that the most precise regulation of relations in society can be achieved.
The concept of legal acts
The legal system of the Russian Federation is considered a structure, one of the elements of which is legal acts. However, before considering the features of the entire legal policy of the Russian Federation, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the key provisions of the concept of legal acts. According to the established tradition in the theory of state and law, normative acts are considered as official documents that have a prescribed form.
They are issued within the competence of a particular government body and contain a certain number of generally binding norms of behavior. Legal acts, as a rule, are designed for a large circle of people, and they are used repeatedly. It should be noted that regulations can also be issued by referendum, taking into account all legislative procedures. This practice has been introduced in many countries of the world, since it most fully characterizes the regime of democracy.
Normative act as a source of law
In the countries of the Roman legal family of law, the hierarchy of normative legal acts plays a primary role in the process of regulating legal relations. Because legal acts in such states are the main source of law. Such documents are issued only by authorized bodies within their competence. In addition, the established form indicates that legal regulations are drawn up according to all existing parameters of legal technology. As a rule, a hierarchy of legal acts exists only in the Romance countries, because in the Anglo-Saxon states the key source is judicial precedent. In this case, the hierarchical structure of legal acts is simply not needed.
Types of main legal acts
If we take into account the peculiarities of the legal system of the Russian Federation, then normative acts, as evidenced by the concept presented above, can be conditionally divided into two large groups, namely:
1. Laws, that is, legal acts that are adopted not just by the highest bodies of state power, but by legislative bodies. In addition, laws can be called all acts issued in the process of lawmaking.
2.Regulations- these are official documents issued by government bodies within their competence and, as a rule, on the basis of previously issued laws. Such documents include acts of the President of the Russian Federation, the government, ministries, and other federal departments.
It is worth noting that at the head of the entire presented system is the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which is the main law of the state. All of these types of basic legal acts of the Russian Federation characterize the established legal traditions of our state.
Legal hierarchy
The hierarchy of the Russian Federation is determined by a certain set of factors through which the need to give some acts (their types) a higher legal force than others is theoretically justified. It is divided into two main types:
1. The vertical hierarchy of legal acts of the Russian Federation is the distribution of all official documents from the Constitution to individual departmental acts. At the same time, there are two main types of vertical hierarchy, namely: federal (which is applied throughout the Russian Federation) and local (the level of federal subjects).
2. The horizontal hierarchy of regulations of the Russian Federation shows the differentiation of all official documents according to their scope of application. An excellent example is the local acts of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. Between themselves they are equal in legal force, but their regulatory regulation is carried out only within the territory of a certain subject.
To understand in more detail how the types of basic legal acts presented above organize the legal regulation of social relations in the Russian Federation, it is necessary to consider their features separately from each other. It is worth noting that in the process of training legal practitioners, special tables are used. With their help, novice lawyers become familiar with the features of a structured system of legal acts. Thus, it helps to understand what the hierarchy of legal acts of the Russian Federation is, the diagram. With its help, it is much easier to imagine the confusing system of regulatory legal acts.
Russian Constitution
The entire legal system of the Russian Federation is enshrined in a single basic state normative act - the Constitution. As in other countries, the main law of the Russian Federation contains the initial principles of ensuring the rights and freedoms of citizens, establishes the division of all into legislative, executive and judicial, as well as the mechanism of their interaction with each other. Although the Constitution of the Russian Federation is called the Basic Law, its publication is carried out in a specific manner. In the same way, changes are made to the basic law. In accordance with the provisions of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, its change is made by convening. But such a procedure is implemented only if it is necessary to revise the entire law. In other situations, changes to the Constitution are made through federal laws.
Principles enshrined in the constitution
The hierarchy of regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation not only comes from the Constitution, but is also largely built on the principles enshrined in it. In addition, these principles characterize the framework of legal regulation in the state. The following initial provisions of the basic law can be distinguished:
1. Democracy of the state and government.
2. Democracy.
3. Federal principle of territorial structure.
4. Russia is a legal and social state.
5. Humanism of all social relations.
6. Secular nature of power.
7. Form of government - republican.
Federal laws
The hierarchy of regulatory acts in Russia, if we do not take into account the Constitution, which is the basis of the legal system, is headed by federal laws. It is federal legislation that has a direct impact on social relations that need to be regulated. At the same time, laws can address almost any issues that are the subject of jurisdiction directly of the federation or its subjects. The norms of these legal acts are mandatory for execution at all levels of regulatory regulation. The by-laws issued must not only comply with the norms of the laws, but also not contradict them.
As a rule, federal laws are adopted on the following issues, for example:
Amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation;
Regarding the federal structure of the Russian Federation;
Protection of human rights and freedoms;
Regulation of the three-tier system of legislative, judicial and executive authorities;
Establishment of the federal budget;
Ensuring security, law and order;
Regulation of other issues of foreign and domestic policy;
Issues that are not covered by federal legislation are regulated by the constituent entities. Nevertheless, the hierarchy of regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation is actually headed by laws, which indicates their significant role. Therefore, the provisions of the Federal Law are always a priority.
Types of Federal Laws
Laws, like other legal acts, have their own classification. As a rule, all laws of the Russian Federation are divided into two key types:
1. Basic laws, that is, normative acts issued through lawmaking by an authorized government body to regulate certain legal relations.
2. Laws on amendments are specific regulations that have equal legal force with the Federal Law. In essence, they are laws, but their provisions only implement changes in current legislation, and do not regulate any relations.
In addition, it should be noted that the hierarchy of regulatory legal acts in the Russian Federation contains so-called codes. These acts are codified collections of numerous legal norms, united by a single subject of regulation.
Regulations
In addition to the Constitution and the Federal Law, the hierarchy of legal acts also includes by-laws. They are published within the jurisdiction of individual bodies and departments for the operational and “spot” regulation of specific relations and the solution of certain problems. By-laws in their array are divided into acts of the President of Russia and the government. As for presidential acts, they, as a rule, regulate issues related to the conferment of class ranks, honorary titles, appointment to positions in the highest authorities, the provision of political asylum, as well as some issues arising in the process of international cooperation. By-laws of the government are the highest regulations issued to ensure executive power in the state.
Conclusion
So, in this article we present the concept, types and hierarchy of regulatory legal acts in the Russian Federation. It should be noted that the presented issue still needs some legal modifications so that legal regulation by government authorities can be implemented more effectively.
- Subject and methodology of the theory of state and law
- Subject of the theory of state and law
- Methodology (methods) of the theory of state and law
- The place of the theory of state and law in the system of humanities and legal sciences
- Origin of state and law
- Characteristics of power in primitive society
- Social norms of primitive society and methods of social regulation
- Origin of the state
- The concept and characteristics of the state
- Concept, characteristics and essence of the state
- State power, its properties and forms of implementation
- Theories of the origin of the state
- Variety of theories of the origin of the state
- General characteristics of the main theories of the origin of the state
- Typology of the state
- The concept of state type, typology criteria
- Formational approach to the typology of the state
- Civilizational approach to the typology of the state
- Advantages and disadvantages of formational and civilizational approaches in the typology of the state
- Functions of the state
- The concept of state functions, their characteristics and content
- Classification of functions of the Russian state
- Forms of implementation of state functions
- State form
- The concept of the form of state and its main elements
- Form of government, classification
- Form of government
- State-political regime
- State mechanism
- The concept of state mechanism
- Structure of the state mechanism
- State body is the main element of the state mechanism
- The state in the political system of society
- Political system: concept, main features, types
- Basic elements of the political system
- Rule of law and civil society
- The relationship between civil society and the rule of law
- Personality, law and state
- Concept, characteristics, essence and content of law
- Concept and main features of law
- Essence and content of law
- Main schools of law
- Natural law concept. Historical school of law. Normativist theory of law
- Marxist theory of law. Psychological theory of law. Sociological theory of law
- Law in the system of social norms
- Social norms: concept and types
- Law, morality, customs and religious norms
- Legal, corporate and technical regulations
- Principles and functions of law
- Concept, essence and classification of principles of law
- Concept, characteristics and characteristics of the functions of law
- Legal awareness, legal culture, legal consciousness
- Concept, structure, functions and types of legal consciousness
- Concept, structure, functions and types of legal culture
- Legal education: concept, forms and methods
- Rules of law
- Concept, characteristics and structure of the rule of law
- Classification of legal norms
- Methods of presenting a legal norm in articles of a normative legal act
- Forms (sources) of law
- The concept of the form (source) of law
- Legal custom
- Legal precedent
- Regulatory legal act
- Regulatory agreement and other sources of law
- Effect of normative legal acts in time, space and circle of persons
- Lawmaking
- Concept, principles and types of lawmaking
- Stages and stages of the legislative process
- Legislative technique
- System of law and system of legislation
- Concept and structural elements of the legal system
- Grounds for dividing law into branches
- Branches and institutions of law
- Domestic and international law
- The relationship between the legal system and the legislative system
- Systematization of normative legal acts
- Legal relations
- Legal relations: concept, signs, dynamics
- Structure and content of the legal relationship
- Classification of legal relations
- Legal facts and their classification
- Implementation of the law
- Implementation of law: concept and forms
- Application as a special form of realization of law
- Stages of application of law
- Acts of application of legal norms
- Interpretation of the law
- The concept of legal interpretation
- Methods (types) of interpretation of legal norms
- Types of interpretation by subject
- Types of interpretation by scope
- Conflicts and gaps in the law
- The concept of legal conflicts, their types and methods of elimination
- The concept of gaps in the law and ways to eliminate them
- Legal behavior and delinquency
- Concept and characteristics of lawful behavior
- Classification of lawful behavior
- Concept, signs and elements of the offense
- Types of offenses
- Legal liability
- Concept, signs, grounds of legal liability
- Functions of legal responsibility
- Principles of legal responsibility
- Circumstances excluding legal liability. Grounds for exemption from liability
- Types of legal liability
- Law, order, public order
- Concept and principles of legality
- Content of legality
- Concept, signs, structure of law and order
- Content, form, functions and principles of law and order
- The relationship between law and order, public order, legality
- Legal regulation and its mechanism
- Concept and limits of legal influence and regulation
- Legal regulation mechanism: concept and elements
- Methods, types and regimes of legal regulation
- Legal systems of our time
- Concept and structure of the legal system, classification of legal systems
- Anglo-Saxon legal family (common law)
- Romano-Germanic legal family (continental law)
- Legal families of religious and traditional law
Regulatory legal act
This is a legal act containing rules of law and aimed at regulating certain social relations; This is a written document created as a result of the law-making activities of competent state bodies or the entire people to establish or recognize rules of law, introducing, amending or repealing rules of a general nature. M.N. Marchenko notes that all regulatory legal acts are state in nature, their system is determined by the constitution, they contain general regulations in contrast to law enforcement acts, each state has its own hierarchy, i.e. “system of arrangement, subordination of normative legal acts.”
The features of this source of law are as follows:
- this is an act of a normative nature (contains normative instructions);
- this is a legal act (contains only legal norms, as opposed to acts of normative content, for example, instructions on the rules for operating equipment);
- this is an act created as a result of the law-making activity of the state or at a referendum (legislative procedure providing for the passage of a bill in parliament, conciliation procedures, “reading of laws”, promulgation, etc.);
- this is an act that is generally binding (designed for an indefinite circle of persons who are obliged to follow the instructions of this act);
- this is an act drawn up in the form of an official state document (observing the necessary details and indicating the procedure for its entry into legal force);
- This is an act in which the rules of law are grouped into certain structural units (articles, chapters, sections, etc.).
A normative legal act is the most common source of law, especially for countries of the Romano-Germanic (continental) legal system. It enshrines most of the socially significant norms that regulate the most important social relations. Other sources of law do not have general regulatory significance. Articles of normative legal acts clearly formulate the prescribed rules of conduct. Unlike a normative legal act, legal precedents are casuistic in nature, and legal customs are of an uncertain nature. Regulatory legal acts may be subject to rapid changes compared to other acts.
The legislative system of any state is characterized primarily by division into laws and regulations (according to legal force). The grounds for dividing normative acts into types are: legal force, nature and scope of action, content, subjects of publication, etc. The legal force of normative legal acts is the most essential feature of their classification. Acts of higher law-making bodies have greater legal force compared to acts of lower bodies.
The sources of law of the Russian Federation can generally be represented by the following system:
- Constitution of the Russian Federation;
- generally accepted principles and norms of international law and international treaties;
- federal constitutional laws;
- federal laws (codified and current);
- decrees and orders of the President of the Russian Federation;
- resolutions, orders and conclusions of the Government of the Russian Federation;
- acts of the chambers of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation (decrees, regulations);
- departmental acts (federal ministries, federal services and federal agencies issuing orders and instructions);
- acts of state bodies of constituent entities of the Russian Federation; acts of local government bodies.
A law is a normative legal act adopted in a special manner and having the highest legal force, expressing the state will on the main issues of public life. The law contains legal norms and is the main source of law.
The law is adopted only by the highest representative body or by referendum, has the highest legal force and supremacy in relation to other sources of law, reflects the will and interests of the entire society, is issued on the most important issues of state and public life, adopted, amended and supplemented in a special legislative manner. In some states, laws can be adopted not only by representative bodies, but also by the highest judicial authorities, in the order of delegated law-making, in referendums. Laws are adopted on significant issues of public life, in a special legislative order, they form the core of the entire legal system of the state, determining the structure of the entire set of regulatory legal acts of the country.
No by-law can interfere with the scope of legislative regulation. Thus, the primacy of laws, their supreme legal force and the special procedure for adoption are their most significant features. Only the body that adopted it has the right to change or repeal a law.
The classification of laws can be as follows:
- By legal force(constitution, federal constitutional and federal laws);
- by scope (federal and federal subjects);
- By subjects of lawmaking(adopted by referendum or government bodies);
- By industry affiliation(constitutional, administrative, civil, etc.);
- by external form of expression (constitution, code, law, charter);
- by duration (permanent and temporary);
- by a circle of persons (extending their effect to foreigners, citizens, stateless persons, persons of certain professions, etc.);
- by the time of entry into force (directly or from the date specified in the law).
It is necessary to take into account that constitutional laws, defining the legal foundations and constitutional system of the entire state, are constituent and primary in nature, they have supreme legal force in relation to other laws and other acts, they are the normative basis (base) of all current legislation. The law of laws, the fundamental basis of normative regulation is the Constitution. Constitutional laws are a direct continuation of the Constitution, detailing its norms. Ordinary laws may be codified or current. These may include laws of a general, special or emergency nature.
Subordinate regulatory legal acts are issued within the competence of the executive body of state power; they should not contradict the law, but can specify, develop, and supplement it. By-laws have less legal force than laws; they are based on the legal force of laws.
According to the subjects of publication and area of distribution, they are divided into general, local, departmental, and intra-organizational.
1. General by-laws- these are normative legal acts of bodies of general competence, the effect of which extends to all persons of a certain state. These include rule-making regulations of the highest executive bodies (decrees and orders of the President of Russia as acts of initial law-making, decrees and orders of the Government of the Russian Federation, which are normative in nature).
2. Departmental by-laws and regulatory legal acts are adopted on the basis of the laws of the Russian Federation, decrees of the President of the Russian Federation and resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation. In accordance with them, relations under the jurisdiction of a certain executive structure are regulated. But among them there are acts of significant scope (acts of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Federal Tax Service, etc.).
3. Local (regional) by-laws and regulatory legal acts- These are acts of local executive authorities. They are issued by territorial bodies of state power and administration (regulatory decisions or resolutions of constituent governments, etc.).
4. Intra-organizational by-laws and regulatory legal acts They also have another name - local acts. These are normative legal acts issued by various organizations to regulate their internal issues and apply to members of these organizations (various charters and regulations, rules, collective agreements and other acts of commercial and non-profit organizations).
Depending on the level of bodies adopting by-laws, the following hierarchy is distinguished: decrees and orders of the President of the Russian Federation, decrees and orders of the Government of the Russian Federation, acts of federal executive authorities (decrees, orders, orders, instructions, regulations, rules), acts of the head of a subject, acts governments of constituent entities of the Russian Federation (decrees and orders), acts of municipal executive authorities, local regulations, etc.
Local regulatory legal acts (LNA) are adopted in fairly broad areas of public activity (charters, regulations, instructions, etc.). They have acquired particular importance in organizations regulating relations between employers and employees. In market economic relations, collective agreements, labor protection agreements and other acts of joint rule-making acquire great regulatory significance. Local regulations also include orders of the employer and the administration of organizations adopted within their competence.
Local regulatory legal acts belong to the category of secondary legal sources of law, standing at the lowest level of legal regulation. They have a limited scope and must not conflict with laws and other regulations.
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