Журнал ЗАКОН

The article reviews the main national legislative acts — sources of contract law in the Republic of India — with a brief outline of its core private law institutions. It shows that the view of Indian contract law as a „deformation“ of English law, coloured with local and religious nuances, is no longer entirely accurate. This divergence began with the Indian Contract Act of 1872 and has deepened over time (influenced by international trends). Modern Indian contract law closely resembles continental European law in content, and even Russian law in its legislative structure and subject matter. National and religious influences, though not entirely absent, occupy a very minor place, relegated to the furthest legal periphery.

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Keywords: contract law, Indian law, Contract Act 1872, statute of limitations, stamp duty, money laundering, bankruptcy, sale, agency, bailment, tenancy of immovables, employment contracts, public-private partnership, mediation, arbitration

This paper explores the transformative role of competition law in fostering economic development and consumer welfare within India. Rooted in the Competition Act 2002, the study delves into the Act’s key objectives: prohibiting anti-competitive agreements, curbing abuse of dominance, and regulating mergers and acquisitions. The paper emphasises the evolution of India’s competition law, reflecting its departure from the pre-1991 era of static industrial policies to a liberalised market structure. It underscores the role of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in ensuring a fair competitive environment and consumer welfare while balancing dynamic and static economic efficiencies. The paper addresses challenges in enforcing competition law, particularly with cartels, vertical agreements, and abuse of dominance. It highlights the necessity of commitment and settlement mechanisms for quicker case resolution, aligning with global best practices. The analysis also draws attention to procedural inefficiencies, such as low penalty realisation rates and increased appeals against CCI rulings. It suggests reforms, including improved transparency, training for officials, and performance metrics, to enhance enforcement effectiveness. Additionally, the paper discusses the interplay between competition law and innovation, emphasising the need to balance regulatory interventions and market-driven solutions to spur innovation. By advocating procedural economy and alignment with global standards, the study positions competition law as a pivotal instrument for driving India’s economic growth and fostering sustainable market practices.

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Keywords: competition law, competition commission of India, consumer welfare, cartels etc.

The article concerns various aspects of the interaction of justice institutions (primarily courts) within the framework of the Russia- India 2000 Legal Assistance Treaty. It analyses problematic aspects related to the application of certain provisions of this contract to the recognition of court orders, arbitration (arbitration) decisions and similar issues. For clarification of the specified provisions, the author refers to international agreements with the participation of India on international legal assistance in civil cases. Based on the author’s analysis, ways to eliminate the relevant ambiguities in the Russia- India 2000 Legal Assistance Treaty are proposed.

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Keywords: international legal assistance, India, recognition and enforcement of foreign court decisions

The article is devoted to the study of legislation, strategic planning documents, by-laws, and law enforcement practices in the field of data in India with an emphasis on legislation in the field of personal data. The authors analyse the formation of such legislation, its transformation since 2008 in connection with the challenges arising from judicial precedents and tasks in the field of technological development with a focus on the protection of personal data. The Law on the Protection of Digital Personal Data adopted in August 2023 is studied in detail taking into account the comparative legal analysis. The article emphasises the importance of non-personal data in the context of digital transformation in India, analyses India’s Data Strategy, and highlights the problem of finding a balance between the benefits of artificial intelligence technologies and ensuring the privacy of citizens. Special attention is paid to the dynamics of the regulatory environment in India in view of the legal traditions of this state.

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Keywords: personal data, open data, big data, digital data, data circulation, personal data protection, privacy, India

In the context of the review of the genesis of Indian criminal legislation, the article considers the history of the adoption of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, offers a general characteristic of changes in its structure, a more detailed analysis of changes in the basic institutions of the General Part, the transformation of priorities of criminal law protection within its Special Part. As a result of the study, the authors conclude that the spirit of the defunct code continues to be seen in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023. In this sense, the reform of the main criminal law of India in figurative terms should be recognised not as a „major reconstruction“, but rather as a „cosmetic repair“.

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Keywords: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, criminal law institutions, criminal law enforcement priorities, Indian Penal Code 1860

The August Legal Chronicle discusses laws on the protection of the Russian language, the prohibition of Internet searches for extremist materials, amendments to the Civil Code concerning the rights of minors and members of limited liability companies, as well as the Supreme Court’s practice on the status of tax liens.

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Keywords: Russian language, extremist materials, responsibility, rights of minors, bank account, sole participant, tax pledge, arrest pledge

Despite the apparent popularity of this term in governmental, academic and journalistic circles, there is no consensus in the doctrine of international law on its precise meaning, which leads to a noticeable and growing confusion in its application. The application and evolution of this term has taken place mainly in two directions. The first option is its application in a political confrontation with those opponents who use the law and available judicial procedures for their own purposes. On the other hand, the concept of lawfare has been applied for analytical purposes to any state action that uses national and international law, as well as justice, to achieve its goals in both domestic and foreign policy. In both cases, the term lawfare does not have a normative dimension, is not enshrined in international instruments, is not used in court decisions, and remains a doctrinal invention.

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Keywords: lawfare, international conflicts, strategic litigation, abuse of rights

The article examines the legal regime of land plots where buildings and structures divided into premises and parking spaces are located, as well as general-purpose land plots within territorial complexes of immovable property. It is noted that both types of land plots can be considered as common property of owners of immovable property (§ 2 of Chapter 16 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation) and be in shared ownership, the legal regime of which is established by the above paragraph. However, despite the fact that land plots in both cases are part of the common property complex, there are significant differences in the procedure and conditions for including land plots in the common property and the emergence of shared ownership rights to them. The current law allows only land plots on which apartment buildings are located to be classified as common property of buildings. However, land plots under other buildings should have a similar regime if the plots belong to the owners of premises and parking spaces. To do this, it is necessary to amend the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The definition of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, which established the possibility of recognizing a land plot as common property not by virtue of the law, but by the parties to the agreement on participation in shared construction, is criticized. The position of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, which established that one land plot can be the common property of two apartment buildings, is also criticized. When referring to common-purpose plots within territorial complexes, it is noted that, unlike plots under apartment buildings, which always by virtue of the law and free of charge are transferred to shared ownership, for common-purpose plots such a transfer occurs only in exceptional cases specifically specified in the law. The specificity of common-purpose plots is the need for an expression of will to form shared ownership in the presence of conditions stipulated by law, and in some cases, the transfer to shared ownership of such plots is possible only on the basis of a transaction.

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Keywords: real estate, land plot, common property, apartment building, territorial real estate complex

Disputes involving banks have had a decisive impact on the modern understanding of many private law institutions. The apparent authority is no exception. In classic cases, the bank acted as the principal and the courts protected bona fide clients who relied on the apparent authority. However, a new category of disputes is now being considered, when the bank itself refers to the protection of apparent authority as a third party at good faith. The article attempts to find the limits of the application of the doctrine of apparent authority to cases of online-fraud. The article provides current Russian judicial practice, as well as the first decision of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom on a similar issue. The author comes to the conclusion that it is the criteria for protecting the apparent authority, rather than arguments about the form of the transaction or the contractual obligations of the bank and the client, that allow the court to take into account all the factual circumstances of the case and reach a legal decision.

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Keywords: apparent authority, reasonable expectations, form of transaction, online-fraud

Challenging of the debtor’s transactions in insolvency proceedings has a number of peculiarities one of which is special order of restitution. This order stipulates that counterparty that had acquired any property as a result of transaction has to fulfil an obligation to return that property before enforcing their own claim to debtor. In the following research author reveals reasons that underlie this specific order and justifies why it is reasonable despite possible disadvantages.

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Keywords: challenging of transactions, restitution, insolvency proceedings

The author considers historical development of liability for negotiation failure, and also the current state of this institute in Russian law. At the same time, the development of the theory of abuse of rights and existence of fragmentary inclusions of the idea of pre-contractual liability allow to argue that the introduction of Article 434.1 into the text of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation is evolution of the potential that has contained in Russian law during the previous stages of its development. Nevertheless, lawyers have encountered difficulties in determining the nature of such liability. Difficulties in adapting norms of tort law motivate some scholars to insist on contractual qualification. That approach cannot be accepted as correct. In addition, identification of criteria indicating the presence of bad faith in withdrawal from negotiations also causes difficulties. It is suggested that the approach that dominates Domestic science should be expanded.

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Keywords: pre-contractual liability, tort, contractual liability, liability for breakdown negotiations

The article examines the issue of the protection of person’s right to privacy in the context of their image being used commercially by others, analysing the reasons for the inadequate protection provided by current legislation. It provides examples, including from foreign practice, to support its arguments. The authors compare the legal concepts of „appearance“, „image“, and „person’s image“, proposing definitions for each and arguing that in the context of Article 152.1 of the Russian Civil Code, the terms „image“ and „person’s image“ are synonymous. However, they note that these terms are sometimes interpreted differently in practice, leading to conflicting situations. Based on the findings of the research, the article formulates conclusions that define the terms „appearance“, „image“ and „person’s image“. It also proposes a revision of Article 152.1 of the Russian Civil Code to clarify its name and content.

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Keywords: appearance, image, person’s image, exclusive right