The Logic of Law in the Works of Sergey Sergeevich Alekseev

This article presents a detailed study of the logic of law as it appears in the works of Sergey Sergeyevich Alekseev. This paper considers the rationale for the justification of special legal logic and its correlation with formal logic. Firstly, the logic of law may be attributed to the fact that, in contrast to other socio-humanitarian sciences, jurisprudence primarily operates with the category of “due” rather than the category of “being”. In the first place, a rule of law does not simply inform what is, but rather suggests a potential or prescribes a necessary pattern of behaviour for the addressee of that rule. This “special legal logic” is more accurately described as deontic logic, which examines normative notions (such as “allowed”, “obligatory”, and “prohibited”) as well as the relationships between different normative modalities. Secondly, legal logic is expressed in the form of specific legal connections, which are manifested at the level of the dogma of law. The connection between the rule of law and the legal relationship that has arisen, the correspondence of subjective rights and legal obligations within the framework of one legal relationship, and the connection of elements in the mechanism of legal regulation can be attributed to such legal ties. It is worthy of particular consideration that the law enforcement process can be viewed and analysed through the medium of a logical syllogism. Thirdly, S. S. Alekseev posits that it is subjective rights that act as the centre of the structural basis of the law, around which the legal logic is created. This is evidenced by the specific arrangements made within legal constructs (including the types of lawsuits pursued and the associated obligations) which are designed to facilitate the realization of the respective rights of all those engaged in a given legal relationship.