Abstract: This article discusses the quality of constitutional-legal regulation and nature of the state of “developed socialism” based on comprehensive analysis of the text of the 1977 Constitution of the Soviet Union. The subject of this research is the target points enshrined in the Basic Law of the country and used for construction of the essential, institutional, functional-activity, normative-regulatory, and effective principles of the model of the state of "developed socialism". Such material allowed classifying the objectives specified in the 1977 Constitution of the Soviet Union, and determining the integrity of target-setting of the legislator in terms of state-building at the new stage of development of Soviet society. Using the model of the state as an instrument for cognizing state-legal life tailored to the needs of goal-setting of human activity, it is concluded that the 1977 Constitution of the Soviet Union is not qualitative instrument that ensures state-legal development of the country. A range of goals stated stipulated in the Basic Law of the country of 1977 duplicate similar provisions enshrined in the 1936 Constitution of the Soviet Union, and do not reflect the needs of the state of “developed socialism”. In view of the progressive goal reflected in the preamble of the 1977 Constitution, it has turned into the instrument of political-legal construction of reality.

Abstract: The author discloses details of the work of the Constitutional Commission on the new Constitution of the Soviet Union in the period from 1961 to 1964. The list of members of the Constitutional Commission, persons responsible for the formation of constitutional values at the initial stage of building a communist society, and their reassignment to subcommissions is published for the first time. On the example of the activity of the subcommission on the questions of “Public administration, activities of soviets, and nongovernmental organizations”, the author describes the organizational aspects of its work and the nuances of functionality. Assessment is given to the organizing role of apparatus of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR with regards to elaboration of a number of articles for the new Constitution, through the prism of the form and content. The article leans on the materials preserved in the State Archive of the Russian Federation (Fund 7523. Register 131). The presented material is the result of summary of archival research previously not available to the broad academic community. It allows you to debunk the myths that developed after publication of some works and memoirs on the topic. The article illustrates the contribution of staff members of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and a researchers to the creation of the first constitutional framework of the establishing communist society. The author also lists the actors who made considerable contribution to the development of basic constitutional values.

Abstract: The analysis of sources of ideological and normative character demonstrates the process of formation of perception on the state of the whole people within the Soviet legal science and practice. The boundaries of this research are defined through correlation of the concepts: image – model – theory. This allows focusing attention on the significant, system-forming sources of legal knowledge that emerged in the period of 1947-1964, rather than paying attention to separate mentions regarding the need for building the state of the whole people. The theory of the state of the whole people started to develop after L. I. Brezhnev came to power. The author determines the stages in formation of the model of state of the whole people, which were passed by the Soviet State in its development. The three stages in formation of the model of state of the whole people with their legal peculiarities and forms of manifestation were highlighted:
- The first stage is associated with the development and preparation of the draft program of the All-Union Communist Party Bolsheviks in 1947;
- The second stage is characterized by adoption of the program of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1961;
- The third stage is associated with the process of drafting the Soviet Constitution of 1964.
Formation of the model of state of the whole people enables formation of the theory of state of the whole people, implemented with adoption of the 1977 Constitution of the Soviet Union.

Abstract:  
The object of this research is the social relations established in the process of state legal development of institution of compensation for moral damage. An attempt is made to trace the path made in the process of normative regulation before the legislator systematized the legal material that in one or another way deals with questions of compensation for moral damage, and has emerged as an independent interdisciplinary legal institution. Special attention is given to the normative sources, the analysis of which allows determining the key stages of development of the indicated legal institution. The article also examines the origination of academic polemics within the framework of the claimed vector of research. Particular place is given to the legal modeling, historical-legal method, and various approaches towards interpretation of law. The scientific novelty of consists in the fact that based on the analysis of the publicly available normative sources, were identified the key stages of development of such legal institution as the compensation for moral damage. The key stages of development of the interdisciplinary legal institution of compensation for moral damage include: the emergence of norms that regulate certain aspects of compensation for moral damage, and their accumulation (formation of the principles and requirements to compensation for moral damage due to committing a criminal action); systematization of legal norms that regulate the questions of compensation for moral damage and deviation from the comprehension of compensation for moral damage as the means used in criminal legislation, while its consolidation as the method of protection of civil rights; normative registration of the interdisciplinary legal institution of compensation for moral damage, through rejection and revival within the new state legal realities.
 

Abstract: In the introduction the author examines such aspect of the topic as the level of scientific development of the category of “discretion”. Later the author concentrates on the historical and modern examples of discretion related to the questions of state legal structuring and administration. A special attention is given to the public law, including the issues of discretion within the private legal relations. The main part of the research is completed with the demonstration of the issues of discretion pertaining to the questions of serving in military and law enforcement, as  two types of service that are subject to the effect of the unrestricted discretion. Among the main conclusions are the following: 1) category of “discretion” in the area of public legal relations did not receive a corresponding scientific and theoretical conceptualization; 2) discretion, depending on its nature, can have various manifestations; 3) in most cases, the processes taking place within the state legal structuring and administration in the past, as well as in the modern Russia, are predetermined by the discretion of  a particular individual, endowed with certain authorities, usually of state power.