Ius Modernum

Teleological dominants of liability in international air law

2026-06-25T07:53:16+00:00

The transformation of the institution of liability in international air law under the influence of modern global challenges, such as armed conflicts, cyber threats, and environmental issues, has been studied. The purpose of the study is to determine the teleological dominants of liability in international air law at the present stage and to assess their adequacy to the latest risks. The research is based on the hypothesis that these dominants are the resilience and sustainable development of international civil aviation. A teleological approach was applied in combination with methods of synthesis, induction, deduction, and comparative analysis. It has been proven that sustainable development is realized through achieving a balance between the economic growth of carriers and social responsibility towards passengers (in particular, through objective liability under the 1999 Montreal Convention), as well as through CORSIAʼs environmental quasi-liability mechanisms. At the same time, it has been substantiated that achieving resilience requires guaranteeing both flight safety and aviation security. The critical need for effective international legal mechanisms of state liability for armed aggression and acts of unlawful interference (cyberattacks, drone attacks) is emphasized. It has been concluded that the understanding of liability exclusively as a retrospective compensation mechanism is outdated. The modern institution of liability must perform a proactive risk management function. It has been proven that only continuous and prudent modernization of liability norms will allow overcoming the fragmentation of the international legal framework and ensure the viability and sustainable development of international aviation in the interests of humanity.

SBAM in the international trade regulation system

2026-06-25T07:53:03+00:00

This article is dedicated to the characteristics of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism at the EU border (CBAM) with regard to its place in the system of tariff and non-tariff measures regulating international trade. The relevance of the study is determined by the growing influence of the environmental component on international and domestic trade regimes, as well as by the inclusion of "carbon intensity" parameters in the conditions for market access for goods (in particular, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland). The hypothesis is put forward according to which CBAM does not have the characteristics of customs or tariff regulation, and its essence and application features correspond to certain characteristics of non-tariff regulation of international trade and, at present, actually form a non-tariff "procedural" regulatory barrier based on mandatory requirements for monitoring, reporting, and verifying of emissions. Accordingly, when studying the place of CBAM in the system of tariff and non-tariff regulation measures of international trade, the national practice of states, and the approaches of the World Trade Organization, certain features of the Mechanism have been systematized for compliance with the characteristics of tariff or non-tariff regulation. The content of some international and domestic legal acts has been analysed and compared in terms of their interconnection and correlation (in particular, Regulation (EU) 2023/956, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, and relevant provisions of the legislation of the United Kingdom and Switzerland). The impact of international and national components on both the theoretical and practical aspects of CBAM’s operation has been summarized, as well as the practice of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body and the need for a comprehensive approach in this field has been indicated. The obtained results confirm that CBAM is not a customs duty or internal tax and is not levied at the time of customs clearance, which precludes its qualification as a measure of customs-tariff regulation. The organizational and legal structure of CBAM corresponds to the characteristics of a non-tariff "procedural" market access instrument, as it provides for mandatory disclosure of embedded emissions data, their independent verification, and links the possibility of import to the fulfilment of MRV procedures. It has been proven that such a SBAM qualification entails the applicability of Articles I and III of the GATT, the provisions of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, and the need of justifying its legitimacy under Article XX of the GATT. The formulated conclusions define the key international legal implications of CBAM’s operation and establish new requirements for third countries concerning the alignment of emissions assessment procedures with the regulatory requirements of the European Union.

Legal status of officials of state corporations

2026-06-25T07:52:50+00:00

In scientific research, insufficient attention is paid to the legal status of officials of state corporations, and in some cases, it is noted that there is no difference in the legal status of officials of private and state corporations. Therefore, it is relevant to determine the features of the legal status of state corporations compared to the legal status of officials of corporations created by individuals and legal entities. It is substantiated that the legal status of officials of state corporations is determined by the peculiarity of the public-legal status of subjects managing state-owned objects, which participate in civil-law relations by virtue of acquiring ownership rights to the corporate rights of private law legal entities. Officials of state corporations are appointed to their positions taking into account special requirements of an additional nature, as well as the general requirements of legislation regarding joint-stock companies and limited liability companies. The special requirements regarding the legal status of officials of state corporations are determined by the laws of Ukraine regulating the management of state-owned objects and by acts of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, as well as by the charters of state corporations, which are approved by the relevant subjects of public authority. Special requirements are established regarding officials of state corporations in terms of appointment to the relevant position on a competitive basis, taking into account special requirements that may exist in a certain area of economic activity, on a certain market. At the same time, they can be both citizens of Ukraine and citizens of foreign states, except for citizens regarding whom restrictions have been established, including those caused by armed aggression against Ukraine. In performing their duties, officials of state corporations have to ensure the interests of the people of Ukraine in addition to achieving their own private law goals, namely the corporationʼs profit. Such direction may be determined by the field of activity of the state corporation, the purpose of its creation, as well as by the possibility of meeting the needs of consumers in a certain market, etc.

Non-discrimination and inevitability of liability as principles of tax law

2026-06-20T08:28:42+00:00

The article is devoted to the study of issues of effective and proper application of such principles of tax law as "the principle of equality and non-discrimination of taxpayers" and "the inevitability of liability" in relation to the exercise of the right to a tax credit using the example of a specific case. The relevance of the work is due to the fact that during the period of the martial law legal regime, the legislator makes changes to the tax legislation, and this leads to the actual discrimination of one taxpayer in comparison with another taxpayer due to the imperfection of the legislative technique. The research is based on the hypothesis regarding the legality of applying financial and legal liability to a VAT payer in cases where the laws’ provisions have subjected him to discrimination. The study is based on a comprehensive analysis of the provisions of the Tax Code of Ukraine, using a comparative legal method along with an analysis of the legal approaches of the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, the European Court of Human Rights, and regulatory definitions. It is substantiated that tax legislation establishes certain restrictions in the recognition, implementation, and use of the right to a tax credit for a VAT payer while simultaneously granting benefits to another participant in the aforementioned legal relationship. There is a violation of the principle of preventing any manifestations of tax discrimination as understood in the provisions of the Law of Ukraine "On the Principles of Preventing and Counteracting Discrimination in Ukraine". The determining criterion that should be taken into account when resolving the issue of liability for the untimely registration of tax invoices is the ability of the payer to fulfil his obligations. The obtained results demonstrate that the subjects of the studied legal relations should have the same conditions under which they can avoid liability by registering tax invoices in the appropriate transitional period within a single term for both parties to the legal relations.

Legal declaration of a person as deceased vs determination of the fact of death

2026-06-20T08:29:47+00:00

A wide range of issues related to identifying the problems and prospects for considering cases on applications for declaring a person dead or establishing the fact of his death has been highlighted. The relevance of the study is due to the dynamism of judicial practice in resolving cases on applications of such categories, the circumstances, which are taken into account when considering applications, and the evidence provided to confirm them. The above is due to the long-term effect of the legal regime of martial law, general mobilization, active hostilities in part of the territory of Ukraine, and constant attacks by the russian federation on civilian infrastructure facilities, which has led and continues to lead to a large number of casualties among the civilian population and the death of servicemen while defending the Motherland. Quite often, it is impossible to register the death of such persons through civil status registration bodies. Therefore, conducting an analysis, mostly of judicial practice in cases on applications for declaring a person dead or establishing the fact of his death, becomes particularly relevant. The study has practical significance for forming the proposals regarding the collection and submission of evidence when considering cases of the specified categories in court. The study is based on the hypothesis that, in the current conditions, with the country under martial law, approaches to the consideration by courts of cases on applications for declaring a person deceased or establishing the fact of his death, the evidence, their types, on confirming the presence or absence of grounds for satisfying applications in such a category of cases, as well as the terms after which a person can be declared deceased, are changing. To verify and confirm this hypothesis, a system of general scientific and special legal methods of cognition was applied. The involvement of analytical methods, such as deduction, induction, and comparison, made it possible to outline the existing legal problems when considering cases on applications for declaring a person deceased or establishing the fact of his death. A systematic approach was used to identify the interconnections between individual types of the specified legal relations. The formal-legal method was used as the basis for determining some features of the consideration of cases on applications for declaring a person deceased or establishing the fact of his death. Based on the empirical method, the legal positions of the Supreme Court on the application of substantive and procedural law norms in cases on applications for declaring a person deceased or establishing the fact of his death by courts of first and appellate instance were studied. The forecasting method made it possible to outline the prospects for the development of the studied sphere of legal relations. The results obtained in the course of the conducted research confirmed the proposed hypothesis.

Implementation of discretionary powers in the field of public administration

2026-06-20T08:28:29+00:00

The problems of implementing the discretionary powers by public administration authorities in the context of reforming the public governance system and adaptating national legislation to European standards have been studied. The relevance of the topic is driven by the increasing role of administrative discretion in decision-making management and the need to ensure a balance between managerial flexibility and the principles of the rule of law. The research hypothesis is based on the assumption that the challenges in exercising discretionary powers are not related to the existence of the discretion institution itself, but to the insufficient regulatory definition of its boundaries and the lack of effective guarantees for its lawful application. The methodological framework of the study includes systemic analysis, formal legal and comparative legal methods, as well as the examination of doctrinal approaches and regulatory sources. As a result of the study, the necessity of improving legislative drafting techniques, specifying decision-making criteria, strengthening the obligation to justify the administrative acts, developing consistent administrative practice, and enhancing judicial control over the discretionary limits has been substantiated. It has been proven that discretionary powers should be considered as a legally regulated form of administrative autonomy, the exercise of which is subject to the principles of proportionality, equality and legal certainty. The obtained results may be used for further improvement of administrative legislation and law enforcement practice.

The right to individualization of thought and feeling

2026-06-20T08:28:17+00:00

The theoretical approaches available in the scientific literature to the analysis of the phenomena of public opinion and popular sentiment have been studied for a better understanding of their correlation and the awareness of the necessity of legally guaranteeing an individual’s right to individualize not only thought but also feeling. The challenges for the proper existence of public opinion and popular sentiment – the tyranny of the majority and the simulation of public opinion – have been examined. An attempt has been made to find out why the simulation of public opinion, which is perhaps the greatest threat to human intellectual freedom today, often finds prepared ground for itself in the intellectual life of society. The phenomenon of the fatalism of the popular masses has been considered, which should not be equated with the tyranny of the majority. The crisis phenomena that, along with public opinion as such (and popular sentiment as its component), characterize intellectual life in the era of mass civilization have been outlined: "popular clamour", tyranny of the majority, simulation of public opinion, fatalism of the multitude, and their interrelation. The meaning of intellectual freedom and its correlation with public opinion in democratic times has been clarified. An attempt has been made to derive a synthetic definition of the phenomenon of public opinion based on the processed sources. The way in which public opinion can be simulated has been thoroughly analysed. Arguments in favour of the legally enshrining the right of an individual to the individualization of opinion and sentiment are presented, and proposals for improving the current domestic civil legislation in the studied area are formulated. The following legislative formulation of the right to the individualization of opinion and sentiment is proposed: "An individual has the right to personal, individual opinions and sentiments, including in the sphere of creative power. The natural person has a right not to yield his or her own opinions and sentiments to the influence of the public, including social networks, as long as he or she does not harm others. The natural person has a right not to be exposed to convictions restricting or forbidding judging with complete independence and discussing except for cases provided by law".

Jurisdictional Immunity of Foreign States in U.S. Law

2026-06-20T08:29:34+00:00

A distinctive feature of claims against a foreign state or its agents is overcoming the reservations of sovereign (jurisdictional) immunity. In domestic doctrine, the issue of a state jurisdictional immunity has traditionally been developed predominantly within the framework of absolute immunity, historically rooted in the Soviet school of international law; however, this approach is currently undergoing gradual transformation. The study was carried out based on an examination of U.S. case law, particularly litigation concerning compensation for the victims of mass international crimes, with a primary focus on Holocaust-related cases and litigation involving state-sponsored terrorism by Iran. The full-scale aggression against Ukraine has catalysed both doctrinal and practical shifts toward a functionally restrictive approach to immunity, particularly in disputes concerning compensation for damage to the life, health, and property of individuals. The judicial prospects for compensation for damage caused by the armed aggression against Ukraine have been analysed through the lens of the judicial practice of the general legal system. Particular attention is focused on the possibility of appealing to the courts of foreign jurisdiction by both private individuals – citizens of Ukraine – and by persons of Ukrainian origin residing abroad who, personally or through their family members, have suffered property or non-property damage as a result of the aggression.

Public interest in whistleblowing: European case law

2026-06-20T08:28:04+00:00

The article is devoted to a comprehensive study of the legal category of "public interest" as a fundamental criterion for whistleblower protection through the prism of the judicial practice of the United Kingdom and the European Court of Human Rights. The work is part of the authorʼs dissertation research on the topic "Legal support for whistleblowing of illegal behaviour in the IT sphere". The theoretical approaches of Ukrainian scholars and the legal conclusions of the Supreme Court regarding the definition of public interest as an evaluative concept have been analysed. The key English common law precedents (Chesterton Global Ltd, Dobbie v Felton), and judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (Guja v. Moldova, Halet v. Luxembourg, Hrachya Harutyunyan v. Armenia), which expanded the boundaries of whistleblower protection, have been examined. The thesis is put forward that for the effective functioning of the whistleblowing institution in Ukraine, it is necessary to implement a multi-factor test for assessing the public interest, which is based on the objective reasonableness of the whistleblower's beliefs and the social significance of the disclosed information.