COSSACK LAW AS HISTORICAL TYPE OF UKRAINIAN CUSTOMARY LAW (XVI CENT. – 40’S OF THE XIX CENT.)

Abstract

This article is devoted to Cossack law – such as the historical type of customary law in the Ukrainian lands in XVI century. – 40’s of the XX century. Cossack law was a subsystem norms of Ukrainian customary law, which established by practice of Cossacks social group, recognized by society and the State as legally binding, and also customary legal institutes, that these norms a pooled. The emergence of Cossack law and his actions in Zaporizhzhya Sich are researched. Three main factors of formation of Cossack law, wich determined the substance of it, are founded: succession of older legal norm of Ukrainian people; the formation of new rules, wich based on military, social, administrative and judicial practices; reception customary legal norms of other nations. With the approval of Zaporizhzhya Sich as a military and political center role of Cossack law increased, and its system evolved and improved. The influence of the Cossack law to state building process in Ukraine in the second half of the XVII century is analyzed. At the beginning of a liberation war led by Bohdan Khmelnytsky Cossack law as a historical type of Ukrainian customary law has been formed, had internal system and regulatory properties. During this period, the Cossack law has lost its former corporatism and went far beyond Zaporizhzhya Sich. Cossack law together with the «kopa» law in the revival of the Ukrainian state in the middle of the XVII century spread throughout its entire territory, becoming the common law of its State. The reception of the Cossack legal customs in the codification projects of Hetman state XVIII century is highlighted. Norms of Cossack customary law were important codification material for making the projects «Prava, za yakymy sudyt’sya Malorosiyskyy narod» (1743), «Sud i rozprava» (1758), «Extract Malorosiyskykh prav» (1767) and others.