Law and custom: the issue of correlation and interaction

Abstract

The article is devoted to the scientific problem of the relationship and interaction of law and custom, which are important regulators of social relations. The main approaches to understanding the concept of law are highlighted. Emphasis is placed on the pluralism of law understanding and the diversity of phenomena, as outlined by the term law. The identification of law with the will of the state is called into question. The concept of custom and its types are analyzed. Legal customs constitute the content of customary law as a phenomenon of social reality. The network of legally relevant customs is closely interwoven with a complex of customs without legal relevance, since each such custom can acquire the mentioned relevance, as well as lose it depending on changing historical conditions.
 Legal custom is characterized as a link connecting the phenomena of law and custom. The impossibility of an unambiguous definition of the concept of legal custom due to the absence of a unified concept of law in jurisprudence is explained. At the same time, the definition of legal custom in the most general sense is proposed as a general rule of conduct established in practice and corresponding to law (or a set of such rules), which has actual legal validity and public recognition. The correlation between legal custom and other customs of society (religious, ethical, household, etc.) is researched. Legal customs are customs that regulate the most important social relations.
 The influence of custom on law is clarified. Customs and customary law formed an important basis for the first codifications. In the future, legal customs were the first to fill the regulatory niche of new legal relations that the legislation did not have time to regulate. Adopting a new law or other normative legal act, the public authorities of even modern states usually try to establish such regulation of legal relations that would correspond to the existing practice at that time, except for cases when it is harmful or inappropriate. The impact of law on custom is analyzed, because the state is able to influence the evolution of established patterns of behavior in society through the use of other legal means. Changes in legislation that do not correspond to the customs of society may be ineffective or even lead to social resistance. Innovations of the legislator, which do not correspond to customs, can gain success and general recognition, provided that they are in harmony with the needs of society.