Alpatov A.A. On interconnection between positive and natural law

Abstract: This article reviews the problem of understanding the essence of natural law and its relation to the positive law. The author attempts to reconsider the long-settled understanding of the natural law. This approach is novel in that the natural law is described by the regularities of physical and social reality. With all this, its relationship with the positive law has a hierarchical and very complex structure.Taking into account the peculiarities of the human nature, the state and legal control of the deviant behaviour is obviously needed based on the requirements of objective regularities. At the same time the nature of state is of dualistic character as well. The natural law is indeed immanent laws of reality, rather than notions, desires or claims resulting from the human mind. In this focus of understanding, the natural law acquires new content which is unusual to the majority of theorists. It is not a mental model, or standard which is changing in accordance with the level of social development. It appears to be a hierarchical system of real laws to be considered – like it or not – in the positive (established by will) law. Their neglect will result in disorder of the social mechanism, impair the efficiency of juristic force, and cause social upheaval.

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