The paper examines the problem of classification of European legal systems in the sphere of private law. The classification of legal systems taken place in comparative studies is examined with the proposal of author’s approach to solving of the respective problem, the essence of which is to distinguish the key element — «tradition of law», that, in its turn, may involve several legal families. The presence of three traditions of private law in Europe, existing and interacting in two dimensions, is declared: Roman private law as a «parent» law, Western European and Eastern European traditions of private law — «children» of the Roman law, that continue to exist now. On the basis of such criteria as the tradition of law, typical for specific country or civilization, peculiarity of the outlook within the tradition, and then — the concept of relations between the state and the individual, the nature of the sources of law, taking into account the degree of influence of Roman private law, the nature of the sources of law, distinction of the following European private law systems (families) is proposed: Roman, Anglo-Saxon, Central European (Germanic), Central Eastern European, Eastern European. The salient features of these systems and, in particular, the legal system of Ukraine, are analyzed.