The article develops author’s conception of needs-orientedunderstanding of Law, based on the historical materialistic social philosophy. In thefoundation of this conception the so called needs-oriented research approach is placed.According to it the Law is possibilities of a human (groups of humans), determined by thelevel of the development of society, to acquire and to use means, needed to satisfy hisbiological and socially reasoned — in certain historical circumstances — needs ofexistence and development, that are guaranteed by social obligations of other persons.To justify this understanding author appeals to the practice of application of theConvention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms by theEuropean Court of Human Rights. There are also being disclosed the heuristic andjustifying abilities of needs-oriented understanding of Law towards explaining theirremovability of inner pluralism of understandings of Law and certain essentialdynamism in almost any of them, and also in disclosing the social essence of the socialphenomena that are designated in both legal science and state legal practice by theterm «law».