Гражданское право • Лекция 1 • Постовой Н.В

Main ideas and lessons

• Course start and requirements

  • The lecture begins the “Civil Law” discipline.
  • The instructor emphasizes strict compliance with:
    • Deadlines for written assignments submitted by email.
    • Consequences: late/unsubmitted work is not counted and leads to a negative grade, which can affect exam/credit outcomes.
    • Written work cannot be revised.
  • Students must answer all questions in assignments; even one unanswered/missing question can negatively affect semester assessments.

• Purpose and evaluation approach

  • The Faculty of Public Administration trains future specialists who will make management decisions, and the quality of those decisions affects people and society.
  • Civil law (compared to mathematics/physics/chemistry) is said to rely on accuracy and conscientiousness.
  • Work is graded using a point system:
    • 65 points → grade 3 or less (text implies a “2” as well; exact mapping is unclear due to subtitle errors)
    • 75 points → grade 4
    • 85+ points → grade 5

• Academic performance issue

  • The instructor notes that in the spring term some students were insufficiently attentive.
  • Example: in municipal law, 30+ students either did not complete assignments or did them poorly, so they did not receive credit.

• Where results and materials come from

  • Results will be posted at the distance learning center; students will be informed.
  • Required literature/resources:
    1. Civil Code of the Russian Federation (in four parts)
    2. Textbook edited by Gena Alekseevich Sukhanov (civil law)
    3. Textbook edited by Sergey Sergeevich Alekseev (also titled Civil Law)
    4. Lecture materials
    5. Assigned scientific works provided during the course
    6. Electronic legal resources: ConsultantPlus / Garant
    7. Study federal laws relating to commercial organizations (e.g., joint-stock companies, LLCs, production cooperatives, etc.)

• Formatting and structure of written work (methodology/instructions)

  • Written work must follow a mandatory registration procedure:
    • Title page
      • Top line: Moscow State University
      • Faculty: Faculty of Public Administration
      • Upper-right corner: student surname, name, patronymic, and group number
    • Each page
      • Text goes at the end of the page.
      • Indicate literature used, including example details such as:
        • textbook title (civil law)
        • year, author
        • page number
    • Concept definition + diagram
      • For each key concept: provide a definition in text
      • Then create a diagram/visual representation based on the definition
      • The instructor says an example diagram will be shown (mentioned via WhatsApp), and students must create diagrams for each written assignment.
  • Work organization for the lecture’s topic:
    • The instructor begins with Topic 1, since civil law is framed as a branch of private law.

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Lecture content: main concepts

1) What is private law and how it formed

• The lecture addresses:
  1. History of formation of private law
  2. System of private law
  3. System of civil law inside private law
• It mentions connections between:
  • philosophy (theory and “natural-scientific experience” are referenced)
  • “doctrine” elements (subtitles appear garbled here, but the intended idea is that civil law reflects broad intellectual foundations such as metaphysics/theory alongside experience)

2) Roman private law and its development (key points)

• Timeline: Roman private law formation traced from 1st century development through 6th century AD.
• Key terms and structure
  • ius civile: initially strictly national Roman law.
  • civitas (city-state concept) and legal foundations include:
    • laws of the 12 tables
    • institutions of Gaius
    • Justinian’s digests
  • Roman law relied not only on laws themselves, but also on lawyers’ commentaries.
• Expansion beyond Roman citizens
  • A second category is described as ius gentium:
    • Used by the praetor in Rome for Romans and foreign citizens (“peregrina”).
    • Expressed often through trade customs.
    • Presented as “universal” and more “progressive” compared to ius civile.
  • Over time, ius civile and ius gentium are described as increasingly converging.

3) Public vs private law dualism in Roman tradition

• The lecture states that Roman thought developed the distinction:
  • public law: relates to the state’s status/benefit
  • private law: relates to benefits of individuals (and, by extension, economic/legal entities)
• Roman jurists are cited as supporting this distinction (names appear with subtitle errors).
• It frames limitations in the legal system as existing since antiquity, dividing law into public and private.

4) Reception of Roman private law in Europe

• The “reception” (borrowing/adoption) of Roman private law is described as expanding widely in the 12th century in Western Europe, then also Southern and Central Europe.
• Roman private law was processed, supplemented, and modified to support national civil/commercial codes (including discussions of adoption of commercial/civil codes in countries such as Germany and France).

5) Theory vs practice: is civil law the same as private law?

• The lecture notes differing scholarly views:
  • Some argue private law = civil law
  • Others emphasize dualism (private law split into multiple branches)
• It claims dualism is recognized in:
  • “70 countries”
  • Many countries have civil codes, plus commercial/trade or entrepreneurial codes.

6) Continental vs Anglo-Saxon private law systems

• Continental (Roman-influenced) system
  • Codified structure using codes of laws and individual laws.
  • Codification in the 19th century (France, Germany, etc. are cited).
• Anglo-Saxon system
  • Initially does not separate public vs private the same way; law is “mixed.”
  • Later influenced by theoretical substantiation (public vs private rights).
  • Development via case law (royal/common law courts, chancery, equity).
  • Branches gradually merge by late 19th century.
  • Spread to: USA, Canada, Australia, and others.
• The lecture also states that due to economic integration, systems are converging.

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Civil law structure and sub-branches (detailed bullet list)

A) Civil law: general vs special parts

• General part includes
  • concepts
  • subject matter
  • method
  • principles
  • sources
  • science
  • legal relations and their structure
  • subjects and objects of legal relations
  • protection of rights
  • terms of transactions
  • obligations
  • liability-related rules (and others mentioned)
• Special part includes
  • types of obligations and their fulfillment
  • (Subtitles suggest debate about whether the special part is conceptually distinct; however, the practical code structure clearly contains both general and special sections.)

B) Sub-branches (said to be five)

1. Property law
   • ownership rights
   • limited property rights
   • economic management
   • operational management
   • easements
   • etc.
2. Law of obligations
   • contracts
   • transactions
   • tortious obligations
3. Exclusive rights
   • intellectual property
   • industrial property
   • legal regime including trademarks, trade names, etc.
4. Inheritance rights
   • presented as a major life-relevant topic to master
5. Protection of intangible assets and personal non-property assets
   • honor and dignity
   • business reputation
   • life and health
   • personal inviolability
   • a person’s name
   • etc.

C) Institutions within sub-branches (examples)

• Sub-branches are divided into institutions (homogeneous groups of norms).
• Example institution breakdown:
  • Property rights institutions:
    • property rights
    • limited property rights
    • methods of protecting these rights
  • Business law institutions (examples):
    • purchase and sale
    • lease
    • contract
    • gift
    • rent
    • gratuitous use of property
    • barter
    • etc.
• Further sub-institutions for purchase/sale:
  • retail purchase and sale
  • wholesale purchase and sale
  • supply of goods
  • contracting agricultural products
  • energy supply
  • sale of real estate
  • sale of enterprises
  • etc.
• Further lease varieties:
  • leases of buildings and structures
  • leases of vehicles
  • financial leasing (leasing)
  • etc.

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Speakers / sources featured

Speaker

• Nikolai Vasilyevich Postovoy (instructor)

Sources / authors / referenced works

• Civil Code of the Russian Federation (in four parts)
• Gena Alekseevich Sukhanov (textbook editor)
• Sergey Sergeevich Alekseev (textbook editor)
• ConsultantPlus
• Garant
• Federal laws on commercial organizations (joint-stock companies, LLCs, production cooperatives, etc.—as categories referenced)
• Roman law materials/authors referenced in the lecture:
  • Gaius
  • Justinian (via “digests”)
  • Dorotheus
  • Titus Livius
  • Ulpian (name appears with subtitle error)
• Roman legal texts mentioned:
  • laws of the 12 tables
  • Justinian’s digests
  • institutions of Gaius
• Lecture-related delivery channels mentioned:
  • WhatsApp (example demonstration)
  • distance learning center
  • submission by email