The Legacy of Classical Natural Law in Russian Dogmatic Jurisprudence in the Late 19th Century

Abstract

The paper examines the inconspicuous influence of the legacy of the classical natural law of the 18th century on Russian dogmatic jurisprudence of civil law, taking as an example the authoritative "Course on civil law" (1868-1880) by Konstantin Pobedonostsev. Despite the dogmatic purpose of the course and the hostility of its author towards European liberal doctrines of natural law, some striking similarities between them can be found, especially in the general provisions and principles of contract law, the method of its exposition and the recourse to justice and supra-positive ideal.JEL Classification: N93.