Place and role of transport law in the law system of Ukraine
Authors: Kovalchuk I. 
Published: March 2024

The article reveals the place and role of transport law in the legal system of Ukraine and characterizes the peculiarities of transport relations, sources of transport law. It is noted that transport law is a complex sub-branch of law that combines norms of civil, economic, administrative, land, labor, commercial and a number of other branches of law. Transport law contains public-law and private­law norms that regulate social relations arising in the field of transport activities. Transport activity is accompanied, as a rule, by the conclusion of transport contracts. In its essence, transport law is more closely related to civil law, because property relations make up the material content of transport contracts, transport risk insurance contracts, legal situations of customs clearance of goods, etc. The main factor in property relations in the field of transport are transportation contracts, which are regulated by civil law. A special place is occupied by the protection of the property rights of the parties to obligations arising from transportation contracts.

It is argued that transport activity includes both the physical movement of passengers, luggage, and cargo from the point of departure to the destination, as well as auxiliary services. Such activities are carried out on the basis of relevant transport contracts. This is the generalized name of all contracts that are regulated by the provision of certain transport services (transportation, forwarding, etc.). The main type of transport contracts is a contract of carriage. Article 908 of the Civil Code of Ukraine establishes the basic provisions regarding contracts for the carriage of cargo, passengers, and luggage, including liability for the main types of violations of obligations arising from carriage contracts; general regulations on transportation. The conditions of transportation of cargo, passengers and luggage by separate modes of transport, as well as the responsibilities of the parties regarding these transportations, are established by the contract, unless otherwise established by the Civil Code of Ukraine, other laws, transport codes (statutes), other normative legal acts and rules issued in accordance with them

Transport activity, which is accompanied, as a rule, by the conclusion of transport contracts, gives rise to transport legal relations that arise in connection with the operation of transport for the purpose of providing transport services and carrying out related activities in the unity of the organizational-management and economic (civil- law) component of such exploitation

The subjects of transport legal relations are state authorities and local self-government bodies in relations, in particular, regarding licensing of certain types of transport activities, approval of passports of transport routes, admission of carriers to the activity of transporting passages, etc.; suppliers of transportation transport services - railways, motor transport companies, airlines, etc., which provide relevant services on a contractual basis, at the same time observing certain requirements and standards established by the relevant state authorities; consumers of transport services, which in particular include passengers, consignors and consignees; various auxiliary participants in transport activities, in particular forwarders, agents, insurance companies, etc.

The object of transport legal relations is activity related to the transportation of goods, passengers, luggage and mail. A distinction is made between the object of transport legal relations and the object (subject) of transportation. The first is a certain good, for example, a transportation service, for the purpose of which subjects enter into legal relations. The object of transportation is cargo, luggage, hand luggage, mail and, of course, a person-passenger.

Sources of transport law, which are divided into international and national, are analyzed.