Instruction on organization and functions of custody departments of 1919

Abstract

The article discusses a document adopted in the development of the norms of the first Soviet Code on marriage and family. This is the instruction of the People’s Commissariat for Social Security in 1919 on the organization and procedure for the activities of local guardianship authorities. The authors also provide the text of this document. The main objective of the article is to introduce into the scientific circulation a document that was previously almost unknown to historical and legal science. The authors also set out to study the relationship of the instruction in question with the 1918 family Code, in the development of which it was adopted. According to the authors, the implementation of the provisions on guardianship of minors outlined in the instructions was unsuccessful. At the same time, the unrealistic and even utopian nature of certain provisions of the 1918 family Code is especially clearly visible in the study of the problem of implementing the norms of the instruction on guardianship departments. Nevertheless, the authors believe that the studied instruction will allow to re-evaluate the significance of some marriage and family norms of the first years of Soviet power, as well as the views of their creators. For the history of family law, the instruction on the organization and procedure for the activities of the subdivisions of guardianship in 1919 has significant scientific significance. It deserves a scientific introduction and careful scientific study.