Meeting on improving the Russian Federation Civil Code

Dmitry Medvedev held a meeting to discuss amendments to a number of fundamental provisions in the Russian Federation Civil Code.

Among the meeting’s participants were President of the Supreme Court Vyacheslav Lebedev, President of the Supreme Arbitration Court Anton Ivanov, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, Presidential Aide and Head of the State-Legal Directorate Larisa Brychyova, Presidential Aide Arkady Dvorkovich, Justice Minister Alexander Konovalov, and Economic Development Minister Elvira Nabiullina. 

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PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA DMITRY MEDVEDEV: Good afternoon,

We agreed to meet to discuss the work on amending the Civil Code. This is a subject that is drawing quite a lot of attention at the moment. I think it is fitting that the president should be paying attention to these efforts to improve our civil legislation too, because the Civil Code is after all the main code regulating economic relations in our country.

“Civil Code, as the document defining the fundamental property rights in our society and the basic provisions governing economic activity, must be modern and up to date.”

When the Civil Code was passed, our basic position was that it should be an overall stable document, such as we see in most countries around the world, but at the same time, it should also be able to develop, and develop in predictable and clear fashion. We cannot allow the Civil Code to be altered and amended without cease. At any rate, I have always tried to stop such excessive activeness in order to ensure that various silly and hasty changes do not find their way into its provisions. But at the same time, the Civil Code must not be closed off to lawmaking work, because our economy is developing after all, and our life is changing too, and the Civil Code, as the document defining the fundamental property rights in our society and the basic provisions governing economic activity, must be modern and up to date. 

This is why we have drafted a new version of the Civil Code, which includes amendments to a whole number of fundamental provisions and institutions of civil law, including property rights, some provisions on obligations, inheritance law, international law and public law. As this issue also concerns the economic side of the Government, and our business community also has an interest in improving our civil legislation, I proposed holding a meeting today with our senior judicial system officials, the Government Cabinet, ministers, and the people who were directly involved in drafting the amendments to the Civil Code.

Let’s exchange views so as to ensure that we produce a coordinated and updated and solid Civil Code free of any internal contradictions.

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