Criminal law and other features of the laws of Hammurabi

The presented scientific article is devoted to the analysis of the development and formation of the legislative monuments of Ancient Mesopotamia, in particular, the laws of Hammurabi. Being the oldest source of law, the norms under study contribute to the formation of a legal picture peculiar to that time. The features of the formation of citizenship in society, the legislative regulation of emerging legal relations, both between members of society and with the state, are considered. Despite the wide range of legal regulation in the field of economic relations, considerable attention was paid to offenses, including in the above-mentioned area. Special attention was paid to crimes related to the violent theft of property, the penalties for which were emphasized to be cruel. The most common punishment of the above-mentioned historical period was the death penalty, which left a certain imprint on the legal system of subsequent civilizations, not only in the East, but also in Greece and Rome. It is appropriate to note that despite the indicated uncompromising sanctions policy on the part of the state towards violators of legislation in various fields, the prosecution’s arguments were based not only on the witness base, but also supported by other material evidence, namely various documentary evidence. The presence of legal regulation not only in the criminal sphere, but also in civil law, further emphasizes the undoubted progressiveness of the legislation under study at that time.