The place of materialist dialectics in the system of the methods of obtaining law knowledge

The paper reviews a number of issues related to the system of the methods of obtaining law knowledge; in particular, the role of the method of materialist dialectics in terms of this system is investigated. The relevance of this topic is due to the revision of the role of dialectical materialist method in studying state law phenomena in the late XX - early XXI centuries. The concept “dialectical materialism”, the laws and categories of materialist dialectics are briefly characterized. In addition, the issue of the correlation between formation-based and civilizational approaches to the study of the history of state and law is addressed. The author states a point of view that negative attitude towards the method of materialist dialectics may be provoked by inadequate estimation of its place in the system of methods of cognition and negation of other philosophical methods by some authors. The conclusion is that the level of the system of methods of scientific research cannot be limited to any one method; we should not dogmatize the method of materialist dialectics, but critically reflecting and maintaining continuity, we should use those provisions that remain their value now.