Vol 24, No 2 (2020)

The analysis is given on the correlation of state power and local government within the public power system of Russian Federation. The authors note that the interaction of relevant elements can be described as a dualistic model, based on a combination of centralization and decentralization principles. It is maintained, that the principle for interaction between state authorities and local government, especially in light of recent constitutinal amendments, should rest in clear delineation of functions and powers, excluding their arbitrary and unreasonable redistribution. It is also noted that for the effective functioning of local government, interaction between central and local authorities is important, based on the support of the latter by the state. State intervention implies the concept of “rational centralization”, which envisages strengthening state role in the implementation of both organizational and functional foundations of local government in strictly limited cases and without violating Art. 12 of the Russian Constitution.

The purpose of the article is to analyze such a relatively new legal means of combating corruption as codes of ethics. The authors note the harm caused by corruption in higher education; they point out that such harm is cumulative. It is noted that currently the legislation is not limited to combating corruption in public authorities. The anti-corruption law since 2012 defines the obligation of each organization to take measures to combat corruption and take the necessary measures to do so. The authors conclude that more and more attention is being paid to the proper performance of this duty by organizations. At the same time, the mechanism for implementing provisions of ethical codes is closely intertwined with other anti-corruption tools used by universities. It is also noted that the provisions contained in the ethical codes lose their nature and “grow” into legal norms.

At the heart of the problem under consideration there is a conditional paradox with taxes in the minds of people. It consists in that everyone understands that taxes must be paid, but in the minds of many people taxes are perceived as an unnecessary duty. The reason for this contradiction, in our opinion, lies in the unsolved deep problems connected with the existing deficiencies in the taxation mechanism, inadequate manifestation of the goal-setting in the tax activity of the state, and in the absence of a balance of private and state interests in the field of taxation, which generally negatively affects the state of the economy and in general life of society. In our opinion, in order to identify ways to overcome these shortcomings, several new elements should be formulated in the concept of tax law. First, it is necessary to expand the range of elements included in the object of legal support of tax revenues by considering a number of external and internal factors that determine the nature of taxation. Primarily, it envolves taking into account the interests of all participants in the tax sphere, including the whole society as a beneficiary of tax revenues. In this regard, efforts have been made to identify the essential nature of the category of “state interests” as an element of the dialectical relationship between personal, public and state interests, and on this basis to determine the criteria and substantial elements of the state’s activities goal-setting, which must be guided by in taxation, being simultaneously a separate tax law institution. The role of balancing the interests of the state and taxpayers is highlighted as a principle of ensuring the interests of the state in the tax system and at the same time as a criterion for proper goal-setting within the framework of the system involving principles of financial and legal support of state interests in tax sphere. The foundations of the procedure for establishing goal-setting as a special legal institution in the tax law system are highlighted; unresolved issues of the legal status and functioning of authorized state entities obliged to ensure state interests in this area are identified. The theoretical significance of the work lies in that it analyses the content, development and main features of the manifestation of the state interests in the field of taxation, formulates a proposal to introduce the goal-setting institution in-to the doctrine of tax law as a way to ensure the interests of the state in the process of regulating tax relations. Understanding of the tax according to its social nature as a way of monetary participation of society members in solving common affairs is proposed. At the same time, tax is a matter of concern for the personal interests of a payer about solving common problems. It is this factor that should determine the order of its legal regulation. Since conclusions and provisions proposed in the work are based on the application of interest in all its forms, which has not yet been worked out in tax law, additional studies on this topic are required. The theoretical basis of the study are the provisions on the institution of goal-setting, which assumes a focus on achieving state interests in functioning of the tax system of the Russian Federation. The research methodology is based on general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, description, systematic approach), particular scientific methods (formallegal, comparative-legal, historical-legal), and other techniques. The analysis method allows to rethink the methodological aspects, and theoretical and conceptual approaches to the concept of state interests in tax sphere assist to formulate and clarify some of its features. The systematic approach contributs to the disclosure of the holistic conceptual nature of goal-setting as a separate institution of tax law. The application of the formal legal method makes it possible to analyse the current legislation of the Russian Federation and the practice of its application in the field of tax legal relations regarding ways to achieve a balance of interests between a taxpayer and the state. Application of the historical - legal method allows to identify features inherent in realization of the state interests in the tax sphere.

The article is devoted to the analysis of the legal regulation of “green” financing in the European Union, China and Russia. It has been substantiated that a harmonious and completed system of regulatory regulation of “green” financing has not yet developed either in the PRC or the EU. In this regard, a comparative analysis of the above issues is of particular importance. The purpose of this article is to form an understanding of the legal framework for green finance in the European Union, China and Russia based on an analysis of regulatory acts and scientific sources. The following methods have been applied: empirical methods of comparison, description, interpretation; theoretical methods of formal and dialectical logic. Private scientific methods employed in the work are legal-dogmatic and the method of interpretation of legal norms. Results: the study showed that green financing refers to financial transactions that support the transition to an economy with low carbon emissions and the fight against climate change. In recent years, China has been the leader in green financing, accounting for 28%, or $ 32 billion, of green bonds issued in 2018. Conclusions: In the PRC, the concept and foundations of the legal regulation of green finance are enshrined in the 2016 Guide to Creating a Green Financial System. The main elements included in the concept comprise: 1) pilot areas of green financing, 2) green loans, 3) green funds and public-private partnerships; 4) green securities; 5) green insurance; 6) environmental credit trading; 7) environ-mental risks. The European Union also strives to be a global leader in the fight against climate change. A number of EU regulations and directives regulate various aspects of green financing. On December 11, 2019, the European Commission introduced the European Green Deal, a new concept for economic growth aimed at making Europe the first climate neutral continent. The most ambitious draft of this program is the development of a pan-European climate law (climate code), a draft of which is due in March 2020. Russia is still lagging behind world leaders on the regulatory regulation of green financing, but the first steps in this direction have already been taken. The study was prepared with the financial support of the Russian Federal Property Fund in the framework of the scientific project No. 20-011-00270 "а" (Scientific adviser - E.E. Frolova).

Corporations of attorneys-at-law (in Russian this term is a synonym to “advocate” and similar to “lawyer”; it means a legal professional who passed qualification exam and obtained special status of a lawyer) in the Russian Federation and the Republic of Korea passed complicated historical way and now have many common and even universal features, though circumstances of their forming were completely different. In both Russia and Korea lawyers are members of one of the most significant civil society institutions, which protect rights of their citizens, seeking legal advice or receiving such advice by other means (for example, when a lawyer was designated by investigator in the Russian Federation). Attorneys-at-law face challenges in their qualification and practical experience. Candidates for the status must pass a special test (the qualification exam), but there are some exceptions. One of the important differences is Korean law on the bar and lawyer activities regulated by the Russian legislation. If in Russia every candidate for lawyer's status must pass qualification exam without any exceptions in terms of experience and previous employment, in the Republic of Korea former prosecutors and judges have privileged position and are exempted from the examination as appropriate level of their qualification is presumed. At the same time, in the Russian Federation a candidate for lawyer's status is a priori jurist what means that he must have higher education in the field of law, while in the Republic of Korea access to the attorneys’ corporation in open to everyone regardless of the level and profile of education. However, non-jurist candidates must pass a bar exam. This article provides a comparativelegal analysis of the development and modern regulation of the legal status of a lawyer in the legislation of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Korea, examines both the differences of the legislation of the named countries, as well as common features. Besides this study is one of the first in the Russian legal science with reference to the Korean bar.

The relevance of this work is due to the modern processes of regulation of the legal services market, typical both for Russia and for sovereign States in the post-Soviet space, in order to ensure the constitutional right to qualified legal assistance. The purpose of the work is predetermined by the analysis of ideas about qualified legal assistance in a retrospective and modern sense. The research was based on normative legal acts, including monuments of law, and scientific works (academic publications, monographs) devoted to the development of legal aid. The study was carried out using a set of comparative legal methods: the diachronic method allowed us to compare the basics of legal aid that existed in different historical periods; the synchronous method made it possible to compare the legal reality of Russia with other countries. The problem-chronological method allowed to study the essential features of the evolution of ideas about legal aid that are directly dependent on the socio-cultural transformations of the political and legal system of the and interpretation of norms, implementation of which determines the modern processes of professionalization of legal aid. The study of pre-revolutionary legislation of Russia allowed us to conclude that the traditional understanding of the provision of professional legal assistance by lawyers is formed in the process of socio-cultural modernization of the legal system during the implementation of the Judicial reform of 1864. the Paradigm of legal nihilism in the first years of Soviet power resulted in lacking any qualification requirements for persons who can provide legal assistance, which predetermined the stable practice of lawyers who did not have professional education. The liberalization of legislation during the thaw period contributed to the return to traditional understanding of legal aid. The regulation of legal aid in modern States is carried out in line with the implementation of international standards in national legislation.

Legal utilitarianism is attractive for practice because this field of legal thought and philosophy of law sets out a particular direction of legal policy and statutory regulation (focus on the utility principle in decision-making) that can, under certain reservations, be used to improve people's lives. Most scholars conclude that the first utilitarian was J. Bentham. However, scientific studies prevalently do not involve the analysis of earlier legal doctrines in relation to the use of utility principle. Thus, the relevance and scientific novelty of analysis of the origin of legal utilitarianism is associated with the need to develop a theoretical component of this doctrine that is of current interest for the legal policy and to enlarge the underdeveloped - in our opinion - theoretical framework of legal utilitarianism genesis. The purpose is to identify the first theory in the history of legal thought, which can be classified as legal utilitarianism, and, if such theory is the J. Bentham's utilitarianism, to determine the reasons why earlier theories based on the utility principle cannot be classified as legal utilitarianism. The theoretical basis of the article is materials such as original sources by various thinkers whose works are based on the utility principle and scientific papers of European and the US researchers. For the purpose of the article, the following methodological tools were used: metaphysical (dialectic method), general (analysis and synthesis, deduction and induction, analogy, comparison) and specific (historical and legal-historical) scientific methods. The main outcome of the research is identification of distinct features of pre-Bentham legal thought based on the utility principle and identification of pre-requisites and basis (provisions which had formed the basis) for J. Bentham's utilitarianism, as well as the answer to the question: “Was J. Bentham the first legal utilitarian?”.

On January 27 - February 1, 2020, the Sixth International Academy “My profession is a lawyer: Sochi 2020” was held at the Sochi Institute of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia, in which more than 40 researchers, practicing lawyers and law students took part. The purpose of the event was to master the methods of practice-oriented training in the profession of a lawyer, the professional skills of a lawyer (communicative, developing a position on the case, resolving legal conflicts, public speaking). This review reflects the general concept of the Academy, the progress of work and its content.