Issues of civil and family law in the works of S. E. Desnitsky

Introduction: in the article, the author justifies the need to study the fundamental foundations of legal science in the context of addressing the political and legal heritage of domestic educators of the second half of the XVIII century by analyzing the socio-political system of our state, as well as the degree of development of civil legislation and the science of civil law. In the context of the civil law views of the first Russian Professor of Law, S. E. Desnitsky analyzes the right of ownership as a necessary condition for the formation of the state, the rights of the owner, the types of things based on the criterion of their freedom in civil turnover, obligations and civil law torts. The prototype of family law examines issues of equality in the rights of men and women, the voluntary marriage of persons of equal age, as well as the legal status of parents and children, including the freedom of testamentary disposition. In conclusion, the author substantiates the significance of S. E. Desnitsky's views on civil and family law. Materials and Methods: the empirical basis of the research is formed by primary sources in the form of the works of S. E. Desnitsky himself. The research is based on dialectical, historical-legal, structural-legal and formal-legal methods. Results of the Study: allowed us to clarify a number of provisions of the theory of civil and family law of S. E. Desnitsky, to reveal their content and practical significance. Findings and Conclusions: the author analyzes the inherent nature of property rights, the types of rights of the owner, the classification of things into types, civil torts, the legal nature of marriage, the legal status of parents and children.