Implementation of the Rules on the Public Contract (Compulsory Contract) in the System of Legislation on the Carriage of Goods by Rail

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The relative independence of railway legislation to a certain extent hinders the applicability of the principles of civil law to the carriage of cargo. This threatens the unity of the legal regulation of property relations. One of the fundamental provisions limiting the freedom of contract in the interests of the economic system as a whole is the recognition of the public nature of business contracts. The public nature of the contract (compulsory contract) of carriage should prevent the arbitrariness of the carrier’s actions and ensure fairness in the provision of transport services. To what extent does the sectoral legislation comply with the principles of civil law? Is the importance of the rules on public contract (compulsory contract) in a special legal regime not diminished? The main task is to assess the degree of compliance of the provisions of the railway transport legislation with the rules on the public contract (compulsory contract). Particular tasks are: to establish the formal inconsistency of industry norms on cargo transportation with civil legislation; to identify contradictions in the procedure for concluding and conditions for the contract of railway cargo transportation to the idea of a public contract (compulsory contract); to prove the need for changes in the design of auxiliary transport contracts from the position of publicity of the contract (compulsory contract) of carriage. The tasks set are solved on the basis of a critical understanding of the norms of civil and railway transport legislation. Methods of comparative jurisprudence were used to prepare the source material for this study. The work is primarily of the nature of a theoretical search, contractual and law enforcement practice was studied at the initial stage of data analysis in order to best understand the essence of the regulations. Based on the conducted research, it should be stated that the implementation of the rules on the public contract(compulsory contract) requires a direct indication in the railway transport legislation. The agreement on the terms and procedure for concluding a cargo transportation contract, especially the procedure for accepting an application for transportation, does not take into account, and in some cases directly contradicts the principles of civil legislation. The system of auxiliary transport contracts creates conditions for a significant restriction of the rights and interests of cargo owners. Based on theoretical conclusions, the paper formulates proposals aimed at improving the current legislation.