Socially oriented non-profit organizations as a form of realization of the constitutional right to association

The article is devoted to the issue of the legal status of socially oriented non-profit organizations. Despite the active development of the institution of socially-oriented non-profit organizations, the question of their legal nature has not been systematically investigated. The Author attempts to systematize the main arguments in favor of the point of view that, by their legal nature, socially oriented non-profit organizations should be referred to public law institutions. Based on theoretical studies, the practice of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, the Author identifies features that characterize socially oriented non-profit organizations as an independent form of the realization of the constitutional right to associate.