Legal Assistance in Civil and Commercial Cases Between Russia and France

Abstract

Review. In view of the increasing mobility of citizens and expansion of humanitarian exchanges between France and Russia there is a growing need in establishing a legal framework for bilateral cooperation. Accordingly, the subject of this article is to study the international legal framework for the provision of legal assistance in civil and commercial cases between the French Republic and the Russian Federation. Three main groups of sources of international legal regulation are analyzed. The first category includes contracts covering practically all aspects of legal assistance in civil and other types of cases. The second group consists of international treaties regulating certain kinds of and/or form of legal assistance. The third group comprises international instruments directly regulating other issues but containing certain provisions on legal assistance. Some conclusions are drawn on the basis of the analysis. First, contractual relationship in this area have had a long history and are characterized by long ago established legal relationships. On the other hand, legal assistance issues are resolved only partially, so international contractual cooperation requires further development and improvement. Since the French Republic and the Russian Federation belong to the states of the Roman-Germanic legal system, the most suitable mutual cooperation might be the conclusion of a bilateral treaty covering the basic types and forms of international legal assistance. Legal cooperation can be continued with account for European Union approach to this issue.