THE IDEA OF THE RULE OF LAW IN CONSTITUTIONAL ACTS AND DRAFTS OF THE UKRAINIAN REVOLUTION PERIOD (1917–1921)

Abstract

Introduction. Article 1 of the Constitution of Ukraine proclaims Ukraine a rule-of-law state, while the Preamble invokes the centuries-long history of Ukrainian state-building. However, a comprehensive comparative-legal study of the consolidation of the idea of the rule of law in the constitutional acts and drafts of the Ukrainian Revolution period (1917–1921) has not yet been undertaken.

Purpose. A systematic analysis of the comprehensiveness of the consolidation of rule-of-law features in the constitutional acts and drafts of the Ukrainian Revolution period (1917–1921) and identification of the factors that influenced this process.

Materials and methods. The study covers the Universals of the Central Rada, the UPR Constitution of 1918, the acts of the Hetmanate and the Directorate, the Temporary Basic Law of the WUPR, and the constitutional drafts by S. Dnistryanskyj and O. Eikhelman. Six features of the rule of law, identified on the basis of the positions of Ukrainian and foreign scholars, serve as the analytical matrix. The methodology combines hermeneutic analysis of constitutional texts with formal-dogmatic, comparative-legal, and historical-legal methods.

Results. The constitutional acts demonstrate an uneven but progressive movement towards the rule of law. The UPR Constitution of 1918 most fully consolidated the features of the rule of law among the adopted acts. The drafts by S. Dnistryanskyj and O. Eikhelman developed these provisions further, notably introducing judicial review and a five-branch separation of powers. The reception of the idea of the rule of law was not merely imitative but involved creative assimilation within the context of the national legal culture.

Perspectives. Further research may focus on a comparative analysis of the constitutional acts of the Ukrainian Revolution with contemporaneous constitutional acts of European states.