Protection of rights under Russian civil law in a comparative context

Abstract

The article analyzes the new rules securing the protection of rights introduced in the Russian Civil Code. New enforcement provisions in the Code will contribute to the stability and sustainability of business transactions in the market economy and the observance of contractual discipline. They aim at ensuring the most complete restoration of violated civil rights and restoring the situation that existed before the violation. Positive changes appear in Article 395 of the Code, including penalties prescribing interest payments on unpaid funds for nonperformance of a monetary obligation. The changes to this article have already been tested in practice, as found in a number of interpretations announced in the decisions of higher courts of the judiciary. Yet, an analysis of the Code reveals the absence of any form of penalty in the chapters on the individual types of obligations. Furthermore, a forfeiture occurs only in certain circumstances where it is required due to the nature of the legal relations, as under, for example, transport charters and codes, and laws on the supply of goods for state requirements.