Official judicial interpretation as a form of law development

Abstract

Background. Official interpretation carried out by the highest judicial authorities is essential for improving the current legislation. Despite the fact that initially the decisions of the highest judicial authorities are aimed at improving the quality and uniformity of law enforcement practice, one cannot ignore their role and significance as a form of development of the current positive law. The purpose of the work is to establish the meaning and determine the characteristic features of a special form of development of law in the form of interpretation by the highest judicial authorities of the Russian Federation. Materials and methods. The study used general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, abstraction, analogy, system-structural, etc.) and specific scientific methods (comparative legal, formal legal, method of interpreting legal norms, etc.). Results. Based on the analysis of the features of official interpretation as a form of legal development, the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation and the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation have made the following generalizations. It is concluded that the possibility and necessity of developing law in the process of interpretative activity of the highest judicial authorities are conditioned by uncertainty as one of the properties of law. Interpretation of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation is a form of development of law, since, firstly, it determines the strategy of development and improvement of legislation; secondly, it helps to eliminate legislative imbalance in a particular area of legal regulation. Official interpretation of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation can be considered as a form of development of law in three cases: when filling legal lacunae (gaps); absence of expressed will of the legislator on a specific issue; creation of a generalization and subsequent isolation of a general rule to clarify the current legal norm in the presence of a number of similar law enforcement acts. Conclusions. Interpretation carried out by the highest judicial authorities can be considered as a form of legal development, since the provisions contained in their interpretative acts change the current legal regulation and determine the guidelines for further lawmaking activities, linking the provisions of the law with reality. The results of official judicial interpretation are a necessary feedback channel for the legislator, since it is precisely with its help that newly emerging problems of public life are taken into account.