Features of the legal status of a child in domestic and international legislation

All children have their own rights, which are protected by the Law of the Russian Federation, the UN Assembly and the Family Code.

If the rights and interests of children are violated, it is necessary to contact the relevant government authorities.

Parents must provide the child with proper care and education until he reaches adulthood.

At the UN Assembly, the Convention on the Rights of the Child was unanimously adopted, thanks to which children are now subjects of law.

Thus, a new model of attitude towards children was created, which served as an impetus for changing the position of the child in the family and society.

Now every child is an independent bearer of law or a special subject of law.

Our country participates in this convention and assumes the obligations stipulated by it in full.

Currently, various activities are being carried out aimed at raising the living standards of children and ensuring their legal protection.

The main document of the Russian Federation on the rights and responsibilities of children is the Federal Law of July 24, 1998 N 124-FZ (as amended on December 17, 2009) “On the basic guarantees of the rights of the child in the Russian Federation”

In order for the baby to grow and develop properly, his parents must work and provide him with food, clothing and proper education.

Various government agencies are responsible for enforcing the law.

For example, guardianship authorities are responsible for orphans who are in adoption, that is, under the guardianship of other people.

In the 4th article of the law of the Russian Federation

under the second paragraph it is stated that state policy in the interests of children is fundamental and its priority lies in the following principles:

ensuring children's rights according to the law;
family support so that there is an opportunity to raise a child, organize recreation and health improvement, protect his rights, and also prepare him for a full life in society;
responsibility of officials and other citizens for violation of the rights and legitimate interests of children and for causing harm to them;
support for public organizations that protect the rights and legitimate interests of the child.

This law also states that parents of children or persons replacing them must assist in the implementation of independent actions aimed at realizing and protecting the rights and legitimate interests, taking into account age and legal capacity.

The Law on Education of the Russian Federation is the main document that ensures the protection of the constitutional right of Russian citizens to education and the legal regulation of relations in this area.

The document creates legal guarantees and defines rights, responsibilities and powers in the field of education.

In the prevention of child delinquency, it is necessary to adhere to the Federal Law “On the fundamentals of the system for the prevention of child neglect and juvenile delinquency”

Regulation of family relations - raising children and caring for them

The child must have conditions for spiritual and physical development.

A man and a woman in a family relationship must bear equal responsibility for raising their children - this is stated in the Family Code of the Russian Federation

When parents are divorced and do not live together, the place of residence of the children is determined by the court if the parents cannot agree and decide on the place of residence of the child.

Minors who have reached the age of fourteen can independently choose their place of residence with the consent of their legal representatives.

In this case, the right to live with the father or mother is retained.

The right of children to live and be raised in a family also includes the rights:

to proper care of parents;
the right to know your father and mother;
to be raised by their parents;
comprehensive development and ensuring the interests of the child;
respect for human dignity.

If a child’s rights are violated, it is necessary to contact the authorities with a detailed description of the situation.

Law enforcement agencies must find out the fact and reasons for the mistreatment of the child, and also take the case to court.

Parents' concern is not only about providing children with food, clothing, school supplies, and so on.

Attention should be shown to the child, he should be given assistance in resolving certain issues and developing his various interests.

If there is inaction in relation to the rights of the child guaranteed by the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the worst can happen.

Children may suffer physically and spiritually (deterioration of health, poor social adaptation and loss of human dignity).

Let's protect the family - protect the children

The norms of the Basic Law determine all aspects of our existence: state-political, economic, social, moral and spiritual.

Ideally, the Constitution should express the basic values of our society in the language of law. The degree of family protection and children's rights is an important indicator of the level of social guarantees of the state. The family has been and remains one of the main mechanisms for the reproduction and improvement of society through the accumulation and transmission of experience, traditions and basic values to future generations.

Increasing the social significance of the family, strengthening marriage and family relations - all this is directly related to the further development of the country. The family is the basis of both society and the state.

It is no coincidence that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child of 1989 note that the family, as a natural environment for the growth and well-being of all its members and especially children, must be provided with the necessary protection and assistance.

The institution of family in the constitutions of most states is the subject of special support.

Turning to Russian political and legal history, it is worth noting that the first Soviet Constitutions (1918, 1924, 1925) were aimed at solving primarily sociotechnical problems and did not affect family relations.

It is no coincidence that the first code in the country was dedicated specifically to marriage and family.

In 1918, a code of laws on acts of civil status, marriage, family and guardianship law was adopted.

According to Art. 154 of the Code “parents are obliged to take care of the personality of minor children, their upbringing and preparation for useful activities.”

However, first of all, the code was aimed at destroying the traditional, so-called. bourgeois family by prohibiting the church procedure for marriage and completely excluding the private law aspect from family relations.

The Law on Amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation establishes that children are the most important priority of Russian state policy

In the wake of the sexual revolution that arose in the first years of Soviet power, complete non-interference by the authorities in the relations of married couples was proclaimed, but the upbringing of children was supposed to be transferred to the hands of the state. Eight years later, in 1926, the Code of Laws on Marriage, Family and Guardianship was in force in the RSFSR, which created the preconditions for the separation of family relations for regulation by an independent branch of legislation with a predominance of public law norms.

But as Soviet power strengthened, the leftist overtures of the first post-revolutionary years gave way to an understanding of the family as the cornerstone of society and the state. At the level of the Basic Law, norms related to the protection of the family first appear in the Constitution of the USSR of 1936. In Art. 122 mentions state protection of the interests of mother and child, state assistance to mothers with many children and single mothers, provision of leave to women during pregnancy with pay, a wide network of maternity hospitals, nurseries and kindergartens.

Constitution of the USSR 1977 in Art. 53 for the first time established that “the state takes care of the family by creating and developing a wide network of child care institutions, paying benefits on the occasion of the birth of a child, providing benefits and benefits to large families, as well as other types of benefits and assistance to the family.”

The Russian Constitution of 1993 proclaimed the principle of a social state (Article 7), establishing that in the Russian Federation the family is under state protection and state support is provided for the family, motherhood, paternity and childhood (Article 7, Article 38).

During the period of validity of the 1993 Constitution, a framework for the legal regulation of family relations was created. The Family Code and a number of federal laws have been adopted - in particular, “On additional guarantees for social support for orphans and children left without parental care”, “On basic guarantees of the rights of the child in the Russian Federation”. And also the Federal Law “On Guardianship and Trusteeship”, which for the first time streamlined the rights and responsibilities of guardianship and trusteeship authorities, reviewed the forms of placement of children in families, foster and foster families were classified as types of “paid” guardianship and trusteeship.

In recent years, legislation in the field of property relations between family members has been actively developing. The structures of a joint will and inheritance agreement that appeared in the Civil Code in 2021 make it possible to ensure the implementation of agreements reached de facto in families on the inheritance of property, as well as on the procedure for maintaining individual family members.

Among the latest targeted, but no less important changes in family legislation, we can highlight the Federal Law “On Amendments to Article 54 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation and Article 67 of the Federal Law “On Education in the Russian Federation”. The law establishes that children living together in the same family have the right of priority admission to study in the basic general educational programs of preschool education and primary general education in state and municipal educational organizations in which their brothers and (or) sisters study.

A lot has been done, but there are gaps and shortcomings, new relationships are emerging that require their own regulation. After all, the 1993 Constitution has been in force for 26 years. We can talk about gradual changes in the life of the state and society over these years. It becomes obvious that there is a need for more detail and specification of legal regulation, including in family relations. The current agenda includes issues of ensuring children's rights, including in the event of parental divorce, issues of property relations between spouses, and the development of reproductive technologies. Adoption and guardianship institutions are in demand.

Thus, as of April 1, 2021, 44.228 thousand profiles were registered in the state data bank on children left without parental care. For comparison: in 2008 there were 115.6 thousand. According to Rosstat, the share of children placed in family care out of the total number of children left without care in 2021 was 88.6 percent. However, even here there are many controversial issues that have not been properly resolved.

Unfortunately, the rights of the child are not always properly ensured. For example, according to Rosstat, in 2021, 298 contracts were terminated at the initiative of guardianship and trusteeship authorities due to improper performance of their duties by adoptive parents.

The changes taking place in society require a holistic, systemic response from the legislator. The Law of the Russian Federation on the amendment to the Constitution of the Russian Federation of March 14, 2021 No. 1-FKZ “On improving the regulation of certain issues of the organization and functioning of public power” paid much attention to issues of family policy, based on the fact that the central value for family legislation is the interests of minors children. At the same time, the legislator proceeds from the fact that the well-being of the child is inextricably linked with the well-being of the family and is determined by it.

Firstly, the Law on Amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation establishes that children are the most important priority of Russian state policy. The state creates conditions conducive to the comprehensive spiritual, moral, intellectual and physical development of children, instilling in them patriotism, citizenship and respect for elders. The state, ensuring the priority of family education, assumes the responsibilities of parents in relation to children left without care (Part 4 of Article 67.1).

Secondly, the powers of the Government of the Russian Federation include ensuring the implementation in the Russian Federation of a unified socially oriented state policy in the field of culture, science, education, healthcare, social security, support, strengthening and protection of the family, and the preservation of traditional family values (clause “c” of 1 Article 114).

Thirdly, Articles 71 and 72 of the Constitution were subject to adjustment. Among the issues under the exclusive jurisdiction of Russia is the establishment of a unified legal framework for the healthcare system, education system, including lifelong education (clause “e” of Article 71).

The issues of joint management of Russia and its constituent entities in terms of family protection are specified. These additionally include: protection of the institution of marriage as a union of a man and a woman; creating conditions for a decent upbringing of children in the family, as well as for adult children to fulfill the obligation to care for their parents.

At first glance, the above norms look somewhat declarative. It would seem that everything is clear - children should learn respect for elders, and parents should make efforts to raise their children with dignity in the family. Why write about this in the Constitution? Moreover, there are “basic” articles of the Constitution - 7, 38, 39, 43. At the same time, more “practical” questions may arise - how, for example, will the government preserve traditional family values? What is this anyway?

It is immediately worth noting that constitutional rule-making has a special character. For the most part, constitutional norms are norms-principles, rules, declarations, goals. The goal of the constitutional legislator is to build a comprehensive system: there are value guidelines in the Constitution, there are specific indications of these tasks in the powers of the government of the Russian Federation, as well as their continuation and development in the powers of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and municipalities. This should also be supported by the principle of unity of the system of public power enshrined in the constitutional amendments (amendments to Article 132 of the Constitution).

And it is right. After all, the protection of family values is complex in nature, carried out by the state, constituent entities of the Russian Federation, municipalities, by influencing social relations with the norms of various branches of law (family, civil, labor, housing, etc.). Industry-specific federal and regional legislation should be developed on the basis of constitutional norms.

State family policy involves preserving traditional family values and increasing the role of the family in society. And traditional family values are, in essence, what family is, motherhood, fatherhood, childhood. As the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation noted in its resolution No. 24-P dated September 23, 2014, within the meaning of Article 38 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, family, motherhood and childhood are those values that ensure the continuous change of generations and are a condition for the preservation and development of a multinational people.

It must be remembered that in family law there is no legal definition of family. After all, the concept of “family” does not and cannot have a clear and unshakable content. The legal content of the concept of “family” is filled, depending on the goals of regulation, with various legal contents. First of all, through the interpretation of the concept of “family members”.

In Art. 2 of the Family Code, family members include spouses, their parents and children (adoptive parents and adopted children). At the same time, it is indicated that family legislation, in cases and within the limits provided for by law, also regulates relations between other relatives and other persons and, in addition, determines the forms and procedure for placing children left without parental care into the family.

For the purposes of housing legislation, the fact of cohabitation is primarily important. Therefore, fears are groundless that if a single mother is raising a child, this is no longer a traditional family and she will not be under the protection of the state. There is no discrimination in the concept of family in the Constitution Amendment Act.

Separately, it is worth mentioning that the Constitution previously did not directly address the protection of children’s rights. Although an adequate legal mechanism for protecting children is the key to the future of the state. It is no coincidence that the same Convention on the Rights of the Child of 1989, recognizing that for the full and harmonious development of his personality, a child needs to grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding, obliges the signatory states to provide children with the protection and care necessary for their well-being .

When preparing the Law on Amendments to the Constitution, the working group created by the president spent a long time searching for the most appropriate wording. At first they wanted to point out that children are the most important value of Russia. After discussions, we settled on the option: children are the property of the Russian Federation, but in the end they adopted the wording that children are a priority of Russian state policy. This, in a certain sense, is a development of the provisions of the Federal Law “On Basic Guarantees of the Rights of the Child in the Russian Federation,” according to which state policy in the interests of children is a priority.

Currently, the current Constitution makes no mention of children left without care. It is obvious that this important social issue requires further legislative disclosure. The message of the amendments is to consolidate the state’s obligation to provide decent conditions for the child, which is in unison with international law. Let us remind you that according to Art. 20 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, a child deprived of a family environment has the right to special protection and assistance provided by the state. States Parties shall provide, in accordance with their national laws, substitute care for such a child.

Initially, the working group made proposals to indicate that the state assumes the responsibilities of parents in relation to such children. During the discussion, these words were added: the state first of all ensures the priority of family education.

This postulate relates to the basic principles of family law (Article 2 of the Family Code) and is developed in Art. 123 SK. Thus, children left without parental care are subject to transfer to a family for upbringing, and in the absence of such a possibility, temporarily, for the period until they are placed in a family for upbringing, they are transferred to organizations for orphans and children left without parental care of all types .

From the above constitutional amendments it follows that the state assumes increased obligations in the family sphere.

We see that the constitutional principles laid down in the amendments are in demand now. In connection with the coronavirus pandemic, a set of additional measures to economically support families was quickly developed. The anti-coronavirus law from June 1, 2021 provides for an increase in the monthly child care benefit to 6,752 rubles. In addition, decrees of the President of the Russian Federation introduced additional payments to citizens with children. We are talking about monthly payments in April - June 2021 in the amount of 5 thousand rubles. for each child under 3 years of age. From June 1, 2021, citizens will be able to receive a one-time payment of 10 thousand rubles. for each child aged 3 to 16 years. An additional monthly payment has also been introduced for each child aged 3 to 7 years, the procedure and conditions for the provision of which are determined by the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. In addition, by decree of the Government of the Russian Federation in April - June 2021, the amount of unemployment benefits was increased at the rate of 3,000 rubles for each child.

It must be emphasized that the further task of state family policy should be to strengthen and develop guarantees of family support. Attention should be paid to the development of the procedure for transferring orphans and children without parental care for adoption, guardianship (trusteeship, patronage), including the implementation of subsequent measures of state support. A certain mechanism of state support in this area has already been formed. A further task should be the legislative strengthening and development of existing guarantees. We are talking about procedures for transferring orphans and children left without parental care for adoption, under guardianship (trusteeship, patronage), including the implementation of subsequent measures of state support.

It is necessary to give preference not to the administrative, but to the judicial procedure for considering many issues related to the rights of the child

Among the new measures, you should pay attention to the fact that from February 1, 2020, when placing one child in a family, the benefit amount is 18,004.12 rubles, and when adopting a disabled child, a child over seven years old, children who are brothers and (or) sisters - 137,566.14 rubles.

Payment of the specified state benefit is made at the expense of subventions provided to the budgets of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation from the federal budget. State benefits provided to guardians and trustees of children also include a monthly child benefit. This benefit is paid from the budgets of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

The guarantees provided at the federal level for the rights to education, medical care, and housing for children left without care should also be developed. In this case, the experience of individual regions can be used.

For example, in the Ulyanovsk region, in such cases, part of the contributions for major repairs is compensated. In the Nizhny Novgorod region, priority is provided for providing children with places in preschool educational organizations, organizations providing treatment, rehabilitation, and recreation for children; one day a month free entry to state museums. The adoptive family is provided with monthly monetary compensation in the amount of 100 percent of the payment for housing and utilities in the portion of the share of payment for these services that falls on the adopted child (children).

We need to talk about both systemic and targeted changes. Currently, until January 1, 2021, the right of children left without care is provided for admission to undergraduate and specialist programs within the established quota (Articles 71, 108 of the Federal Law “On Education in the Russian Federation”). We believe that this right should be unlimited.

It is possible to consider simplifying the procedure for receiving state support for adoptive families. Now it is of an application nature, that is, funds are transferred after the adoptive parents apply. The transfer of data to provide support to such parents should take place in the order of interdepartmental information interaction in order to save citizens from paperwork.

New constitutional provisions show the need to improve the rules on foster care and foster care. Obviously, foster care must be considered on a par with a foster family as a full-fledged type of paid guardianship (trusteeship).

Individual requirements for foster care are established by an agreement and an act on the appointment of a guardian (foster carer). Moreover, in some cases in the regions, the duration of the agreement is very short, which does not fully meet the interests of children.

Thus, in the Tyumen region, the transfer of a child (children) to a foster care provider’s family is carried out by decision of the guardianship and trusteeship authority for a period of no more than six months on the basis of a foster care agreement. In addition, in some regions, responsibilities for foster care in relation to a child (children) placed in foster care are carried out by the foster teacher free of charge, which also does not fully correspond to the approach of the federal legislator to this form of placement of children.

It is obvious that the moral education of a child is most effective within the family. In this regard, it is necessary to actively develop and use socially oriented organizations that could provide social and psychological counseling in order to adapt the family to a new member. It is worth noting here that individual proposals are being worked out to introduce a mandatory socio-psychological examination of persons wishing to adopt a child, and to limit the number of children transferred to the family.

Now there is no limit. At the government level, it is stipulated that the number of children in a foster family, including natural and adopted children, generally does not exceed eight people. However, changes in this area must be approached with extreme caution so as not to violate the rights of children and the ability of close relatives to accept children into the family.

Of course, support for the institution of family is not limited to protecting the rights of children left without care. An important element in overcoming difficult family situations is the implementation of measures aimed at preventing family dysfunction. One should agree with the opinion expressed in science about the advisability of considering issues of the participation of a psychologist, for example, when courts consider disputes related to the place of residence of children or the determination of the order of communication with children.

It is necessary to develop legislation in the field of reproductive technologies, taking into account the need to ensure the interests of all participants in these legal relations, including the child. Further development of property issues between family members is also required.

One of the pressing issues in the life support of any family is the acquisition of their own housing, therefore an important guarantee is the preservation and improvement of mechanisms for using maternal (family) capital.

However, we must not forget that fundamental reform of family law regulation is dangerous, and some particularly radical proposals are sometimes clearly aimed at destroying the family. Proposals to introduce certain types of juvenile technology measures entail unjustified state intervention in family life and, in general, seriously threaten traditional family values. Such technologies, if I may say so, violate the principle of the priority of family upbringing of children. The state’s task in family policy should not be total control over the relationship between children and parents, but to provide opportunities for the upbringing of children and their development in all families, as well as providing moral and material support to families in difficult situations.

From these positions, it is necessary to give priority not to the administrative, but to the judicial procedure for considering many issues related to the rights of the child, including removal. All this should be regulated in detail by law. In addition, the use of institutions for compensation for damage and moral harm caused to parents and children in the event of unlawful interference by government officials in family relations should be developed.

Meanwhile

Some of the amendments to the Constitution that have not yet entered into force are already in effect; they are reflected in the decrees of Russian President Vladimir Putin and laws aimed at supporting citizens and businesses

This was stated on Saturday at a meeting of the working group on preparing amendments to the Basic Law by its co-chairman, head of the State Duma Committee on State Construction and Legislation Pavel Krasheninnikov.

“Life has decreed that some of the amendments to the Basic Law have actually already begun to work in connection with the current situation. This social block, which citizens have always paid attention to, has turned out to be in demand,” TASS quotes him as saying.

Krasheninnikov clarified that social amendments “are set out in one form or another either in presidential decrees or in federal laws” adopted by parliament recently. Speaking about the tasks of the working group at this stage, the deputy said that the main thing now is to continue information and explanatory work.

Another co-chair of the group, Director of the Institute of Legislation and Comparative Law under the Government of the Russian Federation, Talia Khabrieva, said that all this time she and her colleagues in the working group were actively engaged in explaining the adopted amendments.

The work currently being carried out by the country’s authorities to support citizens “follows the logic of amendments” to the Constitution, says Andrei Klishas, co-chair of the group, head of the Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building. He noted that the changes to the Constitution were intended to provide guarantees for citizens for the future, “but the text has become in demand today.” “Nevertheless, the law on the amendment has a clear provision that the amendments will come into force only if citizens support changes to the Constitution in a nationwide vote. That is, the decision is made by people, this is the position of the president,” Klishas emphasized.

He added that the voting procedure should be clear to citizens, and the voting itself should take place in safe conditions. “The Central Election Commission worked very closely on this issue,” the senator stated.

Let us remind you that the law on amendments to the Basic Law was adopted by the State Duma in final reading on March 11. On the same day, it was approved by the Federation Council, then the document was supported by the legislative assemblies of all constituent entities of the Russian Federation. A nationwide vote on the approval of the amendments was scheduled for April 22, but due to the threat of the spread of coronavirus, President Vladimir Putin decided to postpone it to a later date.

Prepared by Galina Mislivskaya

Basic principles for the development of a system for protecting children's rights

Every country in the world has its own adopted declaration on the rights of the child.

The recommendations to this document contain instructions on what you need to pay attention to and what problems should be solved first, as well as what methods and ways to solve them are available.

The main provisions of such a declaration in our country include:

creating favorable living conditions for each child (nutrition, professional medical care, social services and much more);
provision of quality education (school, university);
providing young children and adolescents with the opportunity to actively participate in society.

One of the serious problems in this area is the problem of child abuse.

These are all forms of physical and mental violence, beatings and insults, poor treatment, child exploitation and sexual assault.

Nearly half of all child abuse cases occur in the home, with the remaining half occurring in schools and other child care settings.

Therefore, a special system that helps monitor such violations of the rights of the child is of great importance in this case.

The key problem in this area is the lack of preventive work.

Measures of influence are applied to violators of rights when it is no longer possible to correct the situation.

You will probably be interested in looking at the mental map, which explains in detail who can go to court with a claim for restriction of parental rights
Or HERE you will learn about assistance to large families
How to get an SSN for a child:

What rights does a minor child have?

Any young representative of the Russian Federation is vested with certain powers. All rights of a minor child in Russia are determined by the current legislation of the country, as well as certain documents of the world order.

Before considering the rights available to minor children, it should be understood that they are regulated not only by the Constitution and the IC of the Russian Federation, there are also civil rights laid down by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and some points prescribed in the Federal laws of the Russian Federation. Let's take a closer look at the list of provisions:

The rights of all minor children include the opportunity to obtain a given name, surname, patronymic and citizenship of the country.
The child has the full right to live and be raised in his own family together with his mother and father.
Children have equal rights among themselves, and in addition can take advantage of the protection of available powers.
In accordance with the established possibilities, there is protection against infringement of the rights of a minor child.
The rights of the child in the current Constitution of the Russian Federation provide for the free expression of thoughts on any issues.
Minors are given the opportunity to independently choose their religion and paths of development.
The rights of minor children include free access to necessary information.
Guarantees and valid rights of the child include the possibility of obtaining protection from the state in the event of the loss of parents.
The list of rights of a minor child includes the possibility of a full standard of living.
Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, as well as free medical care.
Every minor citizen of the Russian Federation has the right to receive a decent education and development.
Minors are empowered to play and develop according to their age.
The basic rights of a minor child include restrictions on the exploitation of his labor.
A child with developmental disabilities is empowered to receive additional care that promotes development.
Based on current legislation, the property rights of a child in the family are also secured.

All these listed points are enshrined in the current legislation of the Russian Federation, which is based on the main provisions of the declaration and convention on the rights of the child. In the event that the prescribed norms are not observed, a violation of the child’s rights in his family or in another society is revealed, various responsibilities are provided, including criminal punishment.

All this is done to ensure that young minor citizens grow up and are brought up in decent conditions, which will subsequently contribute to the development of personalities and participation in the development of the country.

Important. The rights and responsibilities of a minor child in the family are enshrined in the current regulatory framework; if they are violated, the responsible persons and structures conduct an investigation.