The continuity of law as a criterion for identifying state continuity and public legal succession

The subject of the research is the continuity of law as a key criterion for identifying state continuity (state identity) and public legal succession. The author defines that in the conditions of politicization of interstate relations and the emergence of disputes over the ownership of certain property, an objective mechanism for resolving conflicts can be the analysis of the variability of the national legal system. The aim of the research is to theoretically substantiate the recognition of the continuity of law as a necessary feature of public legal succession and state continuity. The author thoroughly analyzes historical and modern examples of considering legal continuity, demonstrating that the preservation or abolition of the effect of normative acts is directly related to the recognition or non-recognition of state continuity or public legal succession. Special attention is paid to distinguishing between the concepts of substantive and formal continuity of law, as the latter indicates the continuity of the existence and development of the legal system of a public legal entity. The methodological basis of the research includes formal-legal and historical-legal methods, as well as a dialectical approach to the analysis of legal concepts. The author applies comparative legal analysis of practices and doctrinal sources to identify patterns between state changes and the nature of changes in national legislation. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the author's proposed differentiation of legal continuity into substantive and formal. The first type implies the preservation of the content of legal norms and can exist even when denying the legal connection of the successor with the predecessor state. The second type, according to which the application of legal forms is preserved or altered, serves as reliable evidence of state-legal identity. The work reflects the role of each type of legal continuity in determining state continuity and public legal succession. The conclusions are confirmed by the analysis of specific legal institutions and historical cases. The theoretical justification and use of an objective criterion—the analysis of the formal-legal action of national legislation and its application—are expected to achieve an impartial and politically unengaged resolution of conflicts over legal succession.