Andrei Polyakov

Andrei Vasilyevich Polyakov (born 12 December 1954, Leningrad) is a Russian jurist, creator of the communicative theory of law. He is one of the developers of post-classical legal science and integral legal understanding. Author of studies on the history of Russian legal thought, Doctor of Law, Professor of the Department of Theory and History of State and Law at the Faculty of Law of St. Petersburg State University. Member of several scientific editorial boards, deputy chairman of the dissertation council of St. Petersburg State University, author of more than 170 scientific and methodological works on the theory and philosophy of law, history of legal doctrines. Editor-in-Chief of the journal ‘Izvestiya vysokikh uchebnykh uchebnykh obrazovaniye. Pravovedenie’ (2011-2017). Editor-in-Chief of the Russian Yearbook of Legal Theory (2008-2012).
==Biography==
Graduated from the full-time department of the Law Faculty of the Leningrad State University in 1976. In 1987, he defended his PhD thesis on ‘Revived Natural Law in Russia: A Critical Analysis of the Main Concepts’. Since 1985 he has been engaged in teaching and research activities. Since 1990, he has been a lecturer and then an associate professor and professor at the Department of Theory and History of State and Law at St. Petersburg State University. In 2002 he defended his doctoral dissertation on the topic ‘Communicative concept of law: Genesis and theoretical and legal substantiation’. His research and teaching interests include theory of law and state, philosophy of law, history of philosophy of law, history of political and legal doctrines of Russia, methodology of legal research, theory of law in the context of globalisation. In these disciplines he reads courses and special courses for students of different forms of education, supervises the training of postgraduate students.
==Communicative theory of law==
Polyakov's communicative theory of law is based on the idea that law should be seen not only as a system of norms and rules regulating behaviour, but also as a form of social communication. This theory focuses on people's ability to communicate as the key element that determines not only legal norms but also other forms of social organisation, including morality, religion and science..Общая теория права: Проблемы интерпретации в контексте коммуникативного подхода: Рекомендовано Ученым советом СПбГУ в качестве учебника для студентов университетов, обучающихся по направлению (специальности) «Юриспруденция» / А. В. Поляков; Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет. — Учеб. изд. — СПб.: Издательский Дом Санкт-Петербургского государственного университета, 2004. — 864 с. ISBN 5-288-03339-0 [General Theory of Law: Problems of Interpretation in the Context of the Communicative Approach: Recommended by the Academic Council of St. Petersburg State University as a textbook for students of law / A.V. Polyakov; Saint Petersburg State University. — Educational ed. — St. Petersburg: Publishing House of Saint Petersburg State University, 2004. — 864 p. ISBN 5-288-03339-0].
Polyakov argues that law arises and functions through the exchange of information between people, their interaction and their ability to agree on common rules and norms. In this sense, law is not something external and imposed on society, but is the result of collective communication, harmonisation of interests and exchange of opinions. This approach allows us to better understand how law is integrated into the social structure and how it interacts with other forms of social organisation.
Polyakov's integral legal understanding is an attempt to combine various approaches to understanding law into a single concept. He proposes to synthesise elements of positivism, natural law, sociology and philosophy of law, creating a comprehensive view of law as a multi-layered and multifaceted phenomenon. This approach allows both objective and subjective aspects of law to be taken into account, recognising the importance of both legal norms and the social context of their applicationОбщая теория права: Феноменолого-коммуникативный подход: Курс лекций / А. В. Поляков; Ассоциация юридический центр; Кафедра теории и истории государства и права Санкт-Петербургского государственного университета. — 2-е изд., учеб. — СПб.: Юридический центр Пресс, 2003. — 845 с. ISBN 5-94201-136-2 [General Theory of Law: Phenomenological-Communicative Approach: Course of Lectures / A.V. Polyakov; Legal Center Association; Department of Theory and History of State and Law, Saint Petersburg State University. — 2nd ed., educational. — St. Petersburg: Legal Center Press, 2003. — 845 p. ISBN 5-94201-136-2]
An important aspect of Polyakov's theory is the recognition of law as an open system that is constantly evolving and adapting to changes in society. This allows for the consideration of both traditional legal concepts and new challenges arising in the modern world, such as globalisation, technological developments and changes in social structures.
Polyakov also explores the interaction of law with other forms of social organisation, such as morality and religion, arguing that all these systems are based on people's ability to communicate and interact. His theory is thus an interdisciplinary approach that helps to further understand the nature of law and its role in society.
==Economic analisys of law==
In 2022, under the guidance of A.V. Polyakov, a scientific research was conducted at St. Petersburg State University on the topic ‘Economic Analysis of Law of the Chicago School: Russian Context’ under the grant of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research. The paper analyses the history of formation and the main ideas of the Chicago School of economic analysis of law, paying special attention to the normative approach of Richard Posner and his theory of wealth maximisation. The advantages and disadvantages of this approach are revealed, the main of which is the identification of economic efficiency in the monetary sense with justice. It is shown that similar ideas were also developed by the St. Petersburg legal scholar L. I. Petrazhitsky, whose concept of intuitive law was similar to Posner's understanding of moral intuition. As a result, a modernised version of the theory of welfare maximisation based on the methodology of the Austrian school of economics and the Russian concept of communicative axiological universalism of law is proposed. For the first time the concept of ‘moral costs’ as a component of transaction costs was introduced into scientific circulationV.S. Dorokhin. Pravo, moral i ekonomika: Ekonomicheskiy analiz prava i teoriya maksimalizatsii bogatstva Richarda Poznera [Law, Morality, and Economics: Economic Analysis of Law and Richard Posner's Wealth Maximization Theory. — Alef-Press, 2023. — 365 p. — ISBN 978-5-905966-80-4.]
==Main publications==
Ю. Я. Баскин, Д. А. Баскин. Павел Иванович Новгородцев (Из истории русского либерализма). СПб., 1997. 96 с. [Pavel Ivanovich Novgorodtsev (From the History of Russian Liberalism). St. Petersburg, 1997. 96 p.] / А. В. Поляков. // Правоведение. — 1998. — № 4. — С. 205—207. [Review by A.V. Polyakov. // Legal Studies. — 1998. — No. 4. — Pp. 205—207.]
Поляков А. В. Петербургская школа философии права и задачи современного правоведения // Правоведение. — 2000. — № 2. — С. 4-23. [The Petersburg School of Legal Philosophy and the Tasks of Contemporary Legal Studies // Legal Studies. — 2000. — No. 2. — Pp. 4-23.]
Поляков А. В. Разочарованный странник (Н.Н. Алексеев и идея государства): Комментарий к послесловию А.В. Полякова к книге «Алексеев Н.Н. Идея государства» (СПб.: Лань, 2001) // Идея государства: Учеб.пособие для студентов вузов / Н. Н. Алексеев. — 2-е изд. — СПб.: Лань и др, 2001. — С. 360. — 359 с. — (Классики истории и философии права; Мир культуры, истории и философии). — 3000 экз. — ISBN 5-8114-0336-4. [The Disillusioned Wanderer (N.N. Alekseev and the Idea of the State): Commentary on the Afterword by A.V. Polyakov to the book "Alekseev N.N. The Idea of the State" (St. Petersburg: Lan, 2001) // The Idea of the State: A Textbook for University Students / N.N. Alekseev. — 2nd ed. — St. Petersburg: Lan et al., 2001. — P. 360. — 359 p. — (Classics of the History and Philosophy of Law; The World of Culture, History, and Philosophy). — 3000 copies. — ISBN 5-8114-0336-4.]
Государственно-правовое учение Н. М. Коркунова / А. В. Поляков // Кодекс info. — 2002. — № 5 — 6. — С. 117—126. [The State-Legal Doctrine of N.M. Korkunov / A.V. Polyakov // Code info. — 2002. — No. 5 — 6. — Pp. 117—126.]
Общая теория права: Курс лекций / А. В. Поляков; Ассоциация юридический центр; Кафедра теории и истории государства и права Санкт-Петербургского государственного университета. — учеб. изд. — СПб.: Юридический центр Пресс, 2001. — 642 с. ISBN 5-94201-035-8 [General Theory of Law: Course of Lectures / A.V. Polyakov; Legal Center Association; Department of Theory and History of State and Law, Saint Petersburg State University. — Educational ed. — St. Petersburg: Legal Center Press, 2001. — 642 p. ISBN 5-94201-035-8]
Общая теория права: Феноменолого-коммуникативный подход: Курс лекций / А. В. Поляков; Ассоциация юридический центр; Кафедра теории и истории государства и права Санкт-Петербургского государственного университета. — 2-е изд., учеб. — СПб.: Юридический центр Пресс, 2003. — 845 с. ISBN 5-94201-136-2 [General Theory of Law: Phenomenological-Communicative Approach: Course of Lectures / A.V. Polyakov; Legal Center Association; Department of Theory and History of State and Law, Saint Petersburg State University. — 2nd ed., educational. — St. Petersburg: Legal Center Press, 2003. — 845 p. ISBN 5-94201-136-2]
Общая теория права: Проблемы интерпретации в контексте коммуникативного подхода: Рекомендовано Ученым советом СПбГУ в качестве учебника для студентов университетов, обучающихся по направлению (специальности) «Юриспруденция» / А. В. Поляков; Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет. — Учеб. изд. — СПб.: Издательский Дом Санкт-Петербургского государственного университета, 2004. — 864 с. ISBN 5-288-03339-0 [General Theory of Law: Problems of Interpretation in the Context of the Communicative Approach: Recommended by the Academic Council of St. Petersburg State University as a textbook for students of law / A.V. Polyakov; Saint Petersburg State University. — Educational ed. — St. Petersburg: Publishing House of Saint Petersburg State University, 2004. — 864 p. ISBN 5-288-03339-0]
Поляков А. В. История политических и правовых учений. Учебник. СПб., 2007 (в соавторстве с И. Ю. Козлихиным и Е. В. Тимошиной). [History of Political and Legal Doctrines. Textbook. St. Petersburg, 2007 (co-authored with I.Yu. Kozlikhin and E.V. Timoshina).]
Общая теория права: проблемы интерпретации в контексте коммуникативного подхода: учебник- 2-е изд., исправл. и доп. / А. В. Поляков. М.: Проспект, 2016. — 832 с. ISBN 978-5-392-18085-1 [General Theory of Law: Problems of Interpretation in the Context of the Communicative Approach: Textbook - 2nd ed., revised and expanded / A.V. Polyakov. Moscow: Prospect, 2016. — 832 p. ISBN 978-5-392-18085-1]
Поляков А. В., Тимошина Е. В. Общая теория права: Учебник: Рекомендовано Ученым советом СПбГУ в качестве учебника для студентов юридических вузов и факультетов / А. В. Поляков, Е. В. Тимошина; Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет. Юридический факультет. — Учеб. изд. — СПб.: Издательский Дом Санкт-Петербургского государственного университета, 2005. — 472 с. ISBN 5-9645-0013-7 [General Theory of Law: Textbook: Recommended by the Academic Council of St. Petersburg State University as a textbook for law school students / A.V. Polyakov, E.V. Timoshina; Saint Petersburg State University, Faculty of Law. — Educational ed. — St. Petersburg: Publishing House of Saint Petersburg State University, 2005. — 472 p. ISBN 5-9645-0013-7]
Поляков А. В., Тимошина Е. В. Общая теория права. Учебник. 2-е изд. — СПб.: Издательство С.-Петербургского гос. ун-та, 2015. — 472 с. ISBN 978-5-288-05581-1 [General Theory of Law. Textbook. 2nd ed. — St. Petersburg: Publishing House of St. Petersburg State University, 2015. — 472 p. ISBN 978-5-288-05581-1]
Поляков А. В. История политических и правовых учений. Учебник. 2-ое изд. СПб.: Издательский дом СПбГУ, 2015 (в соавторстве с И. Ю. Козлихиным, Е. В. Тимошиной). [History of Political and Legal Doctrines. Textbook. 2nd ed. St. Petersburg: Publishing House of St. Petersburg State University, 2015 (co-authored with I.Yu. Kozlikhin, E.V. Timoshina).]
Поляков А.В. Правовые и политические учения в Древней Греции. Учебно-методическое пособие для обучающихся по направлению подготовки бакалавриата «Юриспруденция». СПб., 2015 (в соавторстве с Д. И. Луковской). [Legal and Political Doctrines in Ancient Greece. Educational and Methodological Manual for Bachelor’s Degree Students in Jurisprudence. St. Petersburg, 2015 (co-authored with D.I. Lukovskaya).]
Category:People from Leningrad
Category:1954 births
Category:Russian jurists
Category:Russian people