Abuse of Rights: Theoretical and Legal Foundations and Characteristics of the Phenomenon

The article examines abuse of rights as a cross-sectoral legal phenomenon that presupposes a prior clarification of law as a social normative-regulatory system. It advances a working concept of law grounded in justice, freedom and good faith, acknowledging its linkage with morality and ethics. Abuse of rights is defined as the exercise of a subjective right that is inconsistent with the right’s purpose and results in harm. Two constitutive elements are identified: inconsistency between the exercise of the right and its social purpose, and the presence of harm as a legally relevant outcome. The paper underscores the methodological need for general legal theory to formulate unified criteria for identifying abuse of rights, thereby distinguishing it from lawful conduct and supporting the rule-of-law framework in contemporary Russian legal practice.