In Ukraine, the principle of equality before administration has not yet been formalized in the Constitution of Ukraine, nor has it become an independent requirement in the acts of national legislation. However, its recognition as the basic principle of European administrative law calls for introducing this principle into the national branch of administrative law and assuring compliance therewith in national law application practice.

The author argues that national doctrine and law application practice enshrine only a part of the fundamental (basic) administrative law principles in their European meaning. The principle of equality before administration should become one of the most essential principles of the administrative law branch of Ukraine, and this principle is recognized by many European scholars and researchers as an essential prerequisite and requirement underlying the functioning of European administration bodies at all levels.

The purpose of the article is to review the content, meaning, and requirements of the principle of equality before administration as the fundamental (basic) principle of administrative law in European administrative law with the aim of its immediate introduction into Ukrainian doctrine and law application practice as an integral element of the system of administrative law principles. The task is to characterize the content and basic requirements of the principle of equality before administration, its importance and the appropriateness of its introduction in Ukraine with a view to ensuring the comprehensive development of national doctrine and law application practice on the basis of European principles, presumptions, and axioms of administrative activity; to find out the ratio of the common-law principle of equality to its branch-specific manifestation in European administrative law as a requirement of equality before administration; and to formulate proposals and recommendations on the introduction of the basic administrative law principles into national doctrine and law application practice. The methodological basis of the research rests upon the system of general scientific and applied research methods, with particular attention centered on the use of the dialectical method of cognition, the metaphysical, systemic method, structural and functional analysis, legal modeling and comparative legal analysis.

The author argues that proposals for the revision of the Constitution should be scientifically and methodologically developed and formulated with a focus on the consolidation of the content and hierarchy of the basic administrative law principles, this being essential in the context of enhancement of European integration and assurance of compatibility of administrative-law regulation both within the main component of the subject matter of administrative law – organization and functioning of administration, and within the priority areas where functions of executive power are implemented, which national science traditionally regards as included into a special part of administrative law.

The author comes to the conclusion that doctrinal development and implementation of the basic principles of administrative law, which have been developed and implemented in the European Union, in the Constitution of Ukraine, in the system of administrative legislation of Ukraine is an essential prerequisite for cross-border interaction of national administration and European administration within the European administrative area. The content of the administrative law principles should be updated with due regard for the axiological, methodological approaches to determining their content, meaning, and place in the hierarchy of legal principles formulated by European civilization to ensure the needed unity of administrative-law regulation.

Bibliography

Authored books

1. Pukhtetska A, Yevropeiski pryntsypy administratyvnoho prava [European Principles of Administrative Law] (2-he vyd, Logos 2014) (in Ukrainian).