Conceptual features of a public contract in modern civil law

Abstract

The civil legislation reform affects the provisions on public contracts. This article deals with the issues surrounding public contract qualification under the conditions of modern regulation. A characteristic feature of modern regulation and theoretical provisions of civil law is the lack of unified approaches to defining the public contract concept, its essence, and accompanying conditions. In practice, there are various situations wherein the legislator does not give clear instructions on certain aspects of contracts that have a public character. This determines the theoretical and practical relevance of examining this area. The article analyzes the main defining features of the designated contractual structure and examines the features of expression of public-legal principles in legal regulation in these contractual relations. The methodological basis of the research is the analysis of normative material, civil law theory and certain aspects of law enforcement on public contracts norms. The article highlights the legal and conceptual aspects of public contract institution in the context of modern legal regulation. The task of further research on this issue is not so much to find one correct definition of this agreement for the legislator, but rather to fix the individualizing features in the law, by integrating them either into the conceptual apparatus or by directly fixing them in the normative act text. The author attempts to systematize the relevant features and to identify the distinct principles for differentiating a public contract with the related contractual structures. The article also presents clear criteria for differentiation and the hierarchy of the application of certain rules to relations arising from a public contract. This paper concludes by highlighting the need to proceed not only from the definition of law, but also from specific features of a public contract, when identifying the designated contractual structure.