Modern Approaches to Uunderstanding the Inviolability of the Home: Criminal Law and Inter-Branch Aspects
At present there is a growing need for the research of legal problems not only within the framework of specific branches of law, but also with the use of an inter-disciplinary approach. Inviolability of the home as a legal category requires such understanding, as the majority of research studying and analyzing it is carried out independently by specialists in constitutional, criminal, criminal procedure and housing laws. The authors examine several key meanings of the term «inviolability of the home» that are used in different branches of law and conduct their substantive analysis. The branch-specific approach is most evident in the characteristics of the object of the right to the inviolability of the home; at the same time, the analysis of the subject of this right and its contents is most effective if inter-branch approaches are used. In particular, the authors suggest that consent through silence, substantiated in civilistics, should be used when enforcing the norms of criminal legislation on determining the will of the resident to admit someone into their dwelling. They carry out a substantive analysis of the category «resident» from the standpoint of the characteristics of the subject who possesses the right to the inviolability of the home. They also illustrate the impact of civil law theories of the inviolability of the home viewed as an intangible or just a property benefit on the prevention of crimes under Art. 139 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The authors conclude that the term «inviolability of the home» has several meanings and it should be used in the legal doctrine and court practice in accordance with its specific meaning, including as a right to be protected, as the basic foundation of legislation or the guarantee of enforcing a right to privacy.