Family business (family entrepreneurship) is of particular relevance in modern conditions, since it combines family values and business interests with due regard to the complex international political situation and the need to find new tools for social support. Family entrepreneurship is characterized by a high degree of loyalty between family values and business interests, which ensures reliability and sustainability of an enterprise. In addition, family entrepreneurship allows solving social problems such as unemployment and low income of the population. This can be an important factor in economic development of both individual regions and the whole country.

The author concludes that family business can become one of the keys to getting out of a difficult economic situation. Many foreign enterprises have left the Russian market due to the sanctions of unfriendly states. Thus, it is not necessary to replace them with Chinese and other foreign analogues. It is necessary to invest money in the development of family enterprises today so that tomorrow they can become competitive business units and produce high-quality and in-demand goods.

Based on the data analysis, the author identifies possible ways to solve problems in the field of family entrepreneurship in the Russian Federation. They include creation of special support and assistance programs for aspiring family entrepreneurs, including tax incentives, loans and assistance in finding financing; targeted promotion of family entrepreneurship in social networks and the media; organization of support and training in marketing, business planning and business analytics; training in practical skills for successful business; creation of projects for the joint use of resources and infrastructure for family entrepreneurs. The paper provides proposals aimed at creating favourable conditions for the family business development.

Contemporary research aimed at identifying the causes of criminal behaviour has long gone beyond the traditional scientific ideas about the social nature of crime. The number of scientific papers is multiplying; the authors return to the ideas of Lombrosianism and justify the commission of a crime by various genetic reasons of predisposition to committing a crime. Even judicial practice is close to using the achievements of modern science as evidence in a criminal case.

Judicial statistics indicate a slight decrease in the number of violent crimes committed annually. However, their share in the total number of crimes remains significant. The specific nature of some violent crimes through the prism of the criminal’s personality makes one think about the nature of the criminal intent and the causes of criminal behaviour.

The variety of academic studies determines the need to identify conceptual provisions based on which it is possible to draw conclusions about the causes of criminal behaviour and to develop directions for countering crime. One of these areas include genetic research associating the commission of crimes with a specific «crime gene» or recognition of the genetic predisposition of some individuals to committing crimes. Such theories, of course, are not indisputable and they cannot be unequivocally accepted as the ultimate truth; however, the analysis of judicial practice, including the author’s own experience, allows us to conclude that it is necessary to continue scientific research in this direction.

The paper analyses the seizure of property as one of the basic institutions of ensuring criminal justice in Russia. The author provides the most recent practice of district (city) courts, as well as courts of constituent entities of the Russian Federation, based on the legal standing of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation in compliance with the new paragraph «d« of Part 1 of Article 104.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation regulating confiscation of a vehicle used in the commission of crimes stated in Articles 264.1, 264.2 or 264.3 of the Criminal Code. The statutory provisions under discussion have been included into the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation recently. The paper determines the key features of judicial practice concerning the issues of enforcement (in the form of seizure) and confiscation, although not directly specified in the law, but significantly affecting the court’s decision concerning application of the norms in question. The author proves strong influence of the civil law rules on the solution of the issues under consideration in criminal proceedings. In particular, the author refers to the appeal decision of the court of the constituent entity that refers to the definition given by the Judicial Board for Civil Cases of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.

Using cases, the author justifies the necessity of the following additions: Paragraph 7.1 supplementing Part 1 of Article 73 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation obliging the prosecution to collect evidence to resolve the issue of seizure of any property subject to confiscation; amendments to paragraph 8 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation No. 17 of 14.06.2018, regulating the seizure by the court; dissemination of all the above (analysed) norms and provisions on the situation with the commission of crimes provided for in Parts 2‑6 of Article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (the addition of the specified elements of crimes in paragraph «d« of Part 1 of Article 104.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation); legislative obligation of state registration of transactions with vehicles (their purchase and sale, barter, donation, etc.) with their introduction into the unified state register (by analogy with the USRT) of the information about their owners (with the creation of such a register).

The paper is devoted to the controversial issues of criminal liability for violating the secrecy of correspondence, telephone conversations, postal, telegraph and other messages based on the analysis of Russian legislation, generalization of judicial practice and experience of foreign countries. The author explains the concept and content of communication secrecy, examines its correlation with other types of legally protected information, provides a criminal legal assessment of the dissemination of mutual correspondence without the consent of one of the addressees, and considers a sign of insignificance of the act in relation to encroachments on constitutional human rights. Telecommunications secrecy is defined as any information transmitted using wired, radio, optical or other electromagnetic systems, to which access is restricted in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, other regulatory legal and local acts. It is proposed to consolidate the provision that only a person who is not the addressee of negotiations, correspondence and other messages can bear criminal responsibility for violating the secrecy of communication. The rules of qualification of the violation of the secrecy of communication are formulated in conjunction with the crimes in the field of computer information, as well as with the illegal receipt and disclosure of information constituting a trade secret. It is noted that Part 2 of Article 138 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation should be supplemented with the provision listing qualifying signs of the use of information and telecommunication networks by a person and about unauthorized access to the critical infrastructure of the Russian Federation. The author criticizes the refusal of the courts to recognize the violation of the secrecy of communication as an insignificant act only because of the special significance of the object of criminal law protection. A rule is established to eliminate competing criminal law norms concerning exemption from liability for violating the secrecy of communication by applying the article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which is the most favourable for the person who committed the crime. In conclusion, the author proposes a new version of the article of the criminal law on violation of the secrecy of correspondence, telephone conversations and other telecommunication messages that provides for the composition of a crime with administrative prejudice.

The paper scrutinizes the patterns and problems of the evolution of national egoism. The author highlights the impact of national egoism and its more dangerous forms (nationalism, racism, chauvinism) on the formation of extremist views and beliefs. The paper also explains interrelationship between ethnocorruption and national egoism, which represent effective tools of geopolitical influence. In this regard, the author points out the existence of a threat emanating from ethnic corruption and national egoism for the national security of the Russian Federation. The author also notes the importance and necessity of identifying criminological and social patterns affecting the emergence and development of national extremism in the Russian Federation. National egoism arises in a political and socio-economic formation where egoism is not condemned by the society or the state, where there are no ideas of internationalism, there is no common national ideology. Moreover, national egoism is a response, a protective reaction to various forms of discrimination on national grounds. Ethnocorruption features are similar to national egoism and they contribute to the transformation of national egoism into national extremism. Developing national egoism can transform into nationalism. Developing nationalism is able to transform into national extremism, etc.

The paper also focuses on the main socio-economic and regulatory reasons, conditions and circumstances that influence the emergence and development of national egoism and ethnic corruption.

An irrational manifestation of national egoism both in society and in various institutions of power is a criminogenic factor that affects negatively not only anti-corruption security, but also the strengthening of national unity, territorial integrity, inviolability of the foundations of the constitutional system, economic and national sovereignty of the Russian Federation.

Internet platforms have considerable power over information flows on a global scale in the conditions of mass digitalization of modern life. Currently, Internet platforms can control the ability of self-expression of billions of Internet users, including Russian ones. The concentration of the most popular platforms in the United States, where there is a vacuum of legal regulation of Internet platforms that enjoy legal protection as distributors of information along with the press and other types of media, has led to the fact that Internet platforms are actively creating a system of censorship of information, carefully masking such censorship and giving it the appearance of conscientious moderation aimed at combating extremism, false information, aggression, and other illegal phenomena. Censorship in its digital incarnation is fundamentally different from censorship that existed in the past. If earlier censorship used to be based on normative regulation and was regulated in detail, now it is hidden and it uses new technical opportunities. Being a product of the American political system, Internet platforms censorship is based on the political preferences of their leadership. Using historical and legal analysis, including analysis of the history of censorship since its appearance and transformation into the state institution, the author concludes that Internet platforms censorship represents a new phenomenon that has not been described in detail before, requiring reflection in legislation in order to ensure protection of the constitutional rights of users. Effective protection of the constitutional rights of Internet users is impossible without legislative prohibition of Internet platforms censorship and international cooperation aimed at combating this phenomenon.

The paper offers some tools for modeling the prospects of social development through factor analysis as a method based on a mathematical analysis of the impact of various circumstances on the results of law making and law-enforcement activities, determining its effectiveness. The author coins the concept of «factor», which is a phenomenon accessible to human cognition (phenomenon-basis), causing and conditioning the emergence of another phenomenon (phenomenon-consequence); the possibility and ability to act from one state (stage) to another state (stage), or the actual sequential change of states in the development of something. The author identifies and classifies the basic factors (political, economic, social, spiritual) and indicator factors, which when interacting reveal the law-making factors as effective indicators. These factors are the interpreted conditions, causes, parameters that influence the law making and law-enforcement process and the actual result of this process; together they form a group of diagnostic indicators. These approaches are based on the established practice of implementing strategic planning documents adopted in the Russian Federation (general goal-setting; goal-setting according to the sectoral and territorial principle; forecasting; planning and programming), when target indicators and certain methods of their calculation are used as criteria for achieving the result of 51 state programs implemented in 8 directions. For the purposes of factor analysis in the implementation of law-making process, it is necessary to develop the capabilities of information systems. The author proposes a matrix of the factor system aiming at creating of a scientific image full with ideas as to the interaction of conditions (factors). On this basis, factor-modeling technologies are identified, their goals, types and main stages are determined, and an analysis of the legal framework governing relations in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation is undertaken. The author proposes developing the Arctic Code of the Russian Federation. The proposed methodology can be used quite effectively to improve the law-making procedures.

The desire of our country to provide favorable conditions for the creation of competitive digital innovations and technologies is conditioned by the need to achieve technological sovereignty and ensure national security. In this regard, today it is extremely important to work on increasing the innovative activity of business entities, including through the creation of the innovation infrastructure they need, in particular technology parks. The paper is devoted to the study of the formation and development of technology parks in the world, as well as the genesis of their legal regulation in Russia. Until recently, the regulation of technology parks was fragmentary, but the situation has changed. Federal Law No. 488‑FZ of December 31, 2014 «On Industrial Policy» was supplemented with regulations as to technology parks in the high tech field. The use of methods of comparative legal and formal legal analysis revealed the positive aspects of the legislative novel; there was an attempt to regulate technology parks in the field of high technologies at the federal level. The definition of technology parks was given. Alongside with these disadvantages were also revealed: the possibility of creating such technology parks and obtaining support measures only if they meet the objectives of the Federal Law «On Industrial Policy»; lack of regulations governing the activities of technology park residents and measures to support them). The author concludes that it is necessary to adopt an independent federal regulatory legal act as to relations arising from the creation of technology parks in the field of digital innovations and technologies, the establishment of a stimulating legal regime for entrepreneurship in the field of digital innovations and technologies of their residents, as well as evaluating the effectiveness of technology parks. The structure and content of the draft regulatory legal act on technology parks in the field of digital innovations and technologies are proposed.

Any science creates the laws of the studied field of knowledge. The relevant laws were created by mathematics, logic, and jurisprudence. Rhetoric is one of the ancient fields of knowledge, which acquired scientific status simultaneously with mathematics and earlier than logic and jurisprudence. The main object of rhetorical practices, in addition to political activity, has always been legal activity, in particular legal proceedings. It was judicial eloquence that made the name of rhetoric. Eloquence developed both in theory and in practice. For many centuries, rhetoric has been the leading science in the educational sphere and in the field of jurisprudence. It was impossible to become a lawyer without studying rhetoric. Due to the development of specific sciences, interest in rhetoric was lost for a long time; the previously revered discipline acquired a reputation as outdated, suitable only for misleading listeners. However, in the second half of the 20th century under the influence of radical economic and political transformations in the life of society, new requirements for speech practice were put forward. A new informational view of the world required a new ability of judgment, which became neoritoric. Neoritoric, like any science, needs its own laws, which are presented in this paper. The laws of rhetoric that apply in all spheres of its use, including in jurisprudence, are the law of the correlation of word and deed, the law of adequate description, the law of complete and finalized narration and the law of argumentative speech in natural language. All the listed laws may be violated and are violated by the user. A complete description and a complete narrative is not always possible, argumentative speech is often replaced by sophisms and paralogisms. However, similar shortcomings are inherent in other sets of laws. The proposed construction of laws is a model of the functioning and further development of rhetoric, the role of which is great in the modern world.

A striking feature of modern Chinese society is the preservation and development in new conditions of important elements of its traditional legal culture. The paper analyzes one of these elements. It takes its name from the statesman and party leader Ma Siu (1899–1962) and represents a set of basic methods and principles of the judicial system of the country, which judges should be guided by in their professional activities. The author believes that the most important direction of the development of the Ma Siu method in modern conditions is the openness and accessibility of the judiciary, which is manifested in the large-scale introduction of electronic justice into the country’s legal system in 2013. The undoubted leadership of China in this area does not weaken, according to the author, the attention of the authorities to improving the key principles of the Ma Siu method, the essence of which are the spiritual and moral foundations of «justice for the people». These foundations are manifested in the consolidation of the rule of law, the development of the institution of people’s assessors, as well as the widespread introduction of socialist values into the judicial system of the country. The main among these values is considered to be public, state and political control over the activities of the courts, without which justice breaks away from the people and turns into fiction, and the principles of separation of powers and independence of the judiciary are the result of misconceptions of Western philosophical and socio-political thought. The author’s analysis of the laws of the People’s Republic of China adopted in recent years, as well as published scientific articles, comments and statements by official authorities, allow us to conclude that, although no law of the People’s Republic of China directly states this, the main role in controlling the judiciary, of course, belongs to the Communist Party of China, confirming the continuity this «beautiful folk judicial tradition», which arose during the period of Ma Siu’s activity.

There is no single point of view in legal science regarding the criteria for distinguishing public and private law. Moreover, there is no theory that would be recognized by most researchers. The reason lies in the fact that scientists in their works analyze public and private law in various aspects, in this regard, they identify such criteria of differentiation that cannot be universal.

The paper considers public and private law from the standpoint of instrumental theory and define it as a system of legal means designed to satisfy public or private interests, respectively. The undoubted advantage of this theory is that it is not focused on the search for universal criteria for distinguishing public law from private law, but suggests focusing on legal means aimed at creating the conditions necessary to meet the diverse legal interests of legal subjects. It is proved that public and private law are an integral part of legal support. Legal support, depending on the purpose (the type of interest being satisfied — public or private), is proposed to be divided into two types: public law and private law. It is established that support of interests in private law differs from that one in public law in the following. It allows for the possibility of choosing or changing behaviors provided for by regulatory legal means through the manifestation of legal initiative on the part of legal entities, and the form of implementation of such an initiative is self-regulation. Legal relations on the implementation of legal means arising within the framework of private law enforcement of interests arise between legally equal subjects. Private law support of interests is designed to mediate such a type of activity as legal (legal realization) activity. Private law support of interests is characterized by such a type of legal regulation as permissive.