Functions of law definitions: concept and classification
Authors: O Khomenko 
Published: June 2020

The article is devoted to an overview of the problems of the functions of law definitions and their variants. It is noted that the functions of law definitions in modern domestic and foreign scientific literature are usually explored through the prism of their legislative variety. The latter is due, among other things, to the fact that the use of the notion «function of law definitions» by some modern scholars is largely formal in nature, because the term «law» merges with the meaning of «legislative» or «positive law». While accepting in general that legal law definitions perform certain functions that are inherent in the whole system of legal definitions, yet they, like any other kind of legal definitions, perform certain specific functions that are not peculiar to others types of law definitions, in particular, doctrinal ones. In this context, it is first and foremost about the regulatory function of legal law definitions, which is one of the varieties of legal norms, in connection with which it is necessary to speak about the necessity or obligation to take it into account when taking legally significant actions. Although the content of a legal law definition does not include an indication of the respective rights and obligations of participants in certain legal relationships, it always contains specific features or circumstances (legal facts) that underlie a legal relationship.

Turning to the group of general functions of law definitions, first of all, we note that the main functions within this group, in our opinion, are the following: cognitive (epistemological), modeling, ontological, cultural, communicative, cumulative and axiological functions. The above mentioned functions of law definitions are general or those that in one way or another appear within each of their varieties, in particular, legal (legislative), doctrinal and judicial, and, secondly, the list of general functions of law definitions is not exhaustive, given the complexity of the dynamic nature of modern law reality, the development of which provides the opportunity to talk about other common functions of law definitions (for example, ideological).

In addition to general functions, law definitions also have some special functions that appear within their particular variety. In particular, legislative or legal definitions perform such special functions as constituent, regulatory, integrative, law enforcement, and others. Doctrinal law definitions are inherent, in particular, such special functions as prognostic, didactic, heuristic, methodological, etc. Judicial law definitions fulfill, in particular, such important special functions as interpretative, law-concretizing, regulatory-orientational, and so on.

As a result of the research, the author draws the following conclusions:

1. The functions of law definitions as a whole phenomena are a sufficiently extensive system of main directions of their influence on public relations and their subjects (participants) in order to ensure socially useful reproduction of such relations within the defined law-and-order.

2. The functions of law definitions are the directions of their influence on the development of social relations in general and legal practice in particular, and in the case of their normative fixing – on the direct behavior and activities of persons in which their nature and purpose are manifested, as well as their role in ensuring a stable functioning law-and-order.

3. The general functions of law definitions, that is those, which in one way or another appear within each of their varieties, are primarily cognitive (epistemological), modeling, ontological, cultural, communicative, cumulative and axiological functions. Special functions of law definitions are manifested within their specific variety and are determined by the specifics of the nature of law science (doctrinal law definitions), positive law (legal law definitions), and law enforcement activities (judicial law definitions).