THE LEGAL PERSONALITY OF THE STATE IN PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW: CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES FOR UKRAINE

Abstract

The article provides a comprehensive study of the legal personality of the state in private international law, focusing on theoretical and practical issues of its implementation under the conditions of profound transformation of the international legal order and the ongoing armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. The author emphasizes the dual nature of state legal personality, which simultaneously combines the functions of a public authority and a participant in civil legal relations. It is noted that the legal personality of the state in private international law encompasses its capacity to enter into contractual, property, and procedural relations, to acquire and exercise civil rights, and to bear legal responsibility on an equal footing with private entities.Particular attention is devoted to the issue of jurisdictional immunity of states. The article demonstrates that the traditional concept of absolute immunity has gradually evolved into a functional approach, recognizing the possibility of limiting state immunity in cases related to commercial activities or human rights violations. This trend reflects the search for a fair balance between the principle of sovereignty and the effective protection of private parties. For Ukraine, this issue has acquired exceptional importance, as the war has raised the question not only of holding the aggressor state accountable but also of protecting Ukraine itself as a subject of private international law in numerous judicial and arbitration proceedings.The article analyzes recent examples of limiting state immunity in Ukrainian judicial practice, particularly in cases against the Russian Federation for damages caused by acts of aggression. Such decisions mark the formation of a new approach to the relationship between international and national law, laying the foundation for a future international compensation mechanism. The paper also explores the participation of the state in commercial transactions, foreign economic contracts, and international arbitrations, as well as issues concerning the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments and the conflict-of-law regulation of state property rights.The article highlights the growing relevance of the legal regime of state property abroad and its protection under sanctions. The freezing of assets belonging to foreign states and the potential use of such assets to compensate victims of aggression open new dimensions of interaction between international public and private law.The author concludes that, for modern Ukraine, the legal personality of the state in the sphere of private law is not merely a legal category but also a practical instrument for restoring justice, protecting national interests, and implementing the policy of legal accountability of the aggressor.It is emphasized that Ukraine must codify its legislation on private international law in light of wartime realities, develop specific procedures for the state’s participation in judicial proceedings, improve the system of legal representation of Ukraine abroad, and implement the provisions of the 2004 UN Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property. The evolution of the doctrine of state legal personality is viewed as an essential component of shaping the legal architecture of the postwar international order.