Protection of dignity, honor and business reputation. The Civil Code of the Russian Federation, Article 152

Each person has honor and dignity. They are the inseparable blessings of the individual. Citizens also have a business reputation. It is formed in the process of their economic activities. Business reputation is also among legal entities. All these benefits are protected by law.

The notion of honor and dignity

For an individual, an assessment is made in terms of social and ethical norms. Honor refers to a certain measure of the social and spiritual qualities of a person. At the same time each subject has his own idea of his value. It is called dignity. It is recognized by the state for all members of society in equal measure. The concepts of dignity and honor determine the attitude towards the subject as a supreme value. These categories exist in close relationship. Dignity serves as a certain reflection of honor as an evaluation of the society in the mind of the subject. Together, these categories form an organic whole, an indispensable attribute of the individual.

business reputation

For people, it is determined by the level of professional qualification, and for the legal entity - by indicators of production and other economic activities in accordance with its legal status in the framework of market relations. The content of the term "reputation" largely coincides with the definition of honor. However, the former reflects predominantly professional, entrepreneurial qualities, and the second - more ethical ones.

Normative provision

The above categories are closely related to legal provisions. Each subject has the right to protection of honor, dignity, business reputation. Restriction or loss of these benefits leads to a decrease in the established status in relations with other entities. In this regard, civil-legal protection of honor, dignity, business reputation is the most important direction of state social policy. Within the legal system, these categories are considered as intangible benefits and as special subjective opportunities.

Legal personality

It determines to some extent the position of individuals in society, reflects their relationship with the state. Each subject is endowed with a certain set of non-property and property, political rights. They reflect its legal status. These rights act as elements of legal personality. It, in turn, is a specific property of each individual. The right to dignity, honor and other intangible goods is recognized as absolute. This is due to the fact that its implementation is ensured by the obligation of an indefinite number of persons. It consists in refraining from all encroachments on the honor, reputation, dignity of the subject. This duty is enshrined in the constitutional provisions, as well as other legislative norms. In case of violation of orders, judicial protection of honor, dignity and business reputation is provided.

An Important Moment

The right to honor, reputation, dignity, as well as other non-property benefits enshrined in the Constitution, are of practical importance for the subjects, not only in case of their violation, but also without reference to it. When you give a physical or legal entity opportunities, the state provides an appropriate system of guarantees. It forms the conditions in which the realization and protection of rights is carried out.

Classification

The civil legislation fixes the provision that inalienable freedoms and rights, intangible goods are protected by legal norms, if the other does not stem from their essence. In this art. 150 GK defines the list of such categories and divides them into 2 groups. Intangible benefits are established in the norm, which are acquired by virtue of:

• Birth (for natural persons) or creation (for legal entities);
• Of the law.

The first legislation includes health, dignity, inviolability of the person, life, good name, honor, family and personal secrets, business reputation. These categories exist irrespective of their legal regulation. The protection of the dignity, honor and business reputation of the subject, as well as other benefits mentioned above, is carried out only in the event of encroachment on them. The second group includes the choice of residence and residence, freedom of movement, etc. They act as subjective rights in a specific respect. Accordingly, they are regulated by legislative provisions.

Specificity of protection of non-property goods

There is a specific rule, the provisions of which regulate the protection of honor, dignity and business reputation. The article in which they are contained determines the general procedure for the implementation of state guarantees that ensure the protection of these goods. For example, this relates to the dissemination of information that vilifies a person. According to Art. 152 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the subject may demand its refutation. In this case, the person who made the information public can avoid liability if he proves that the information is true. In fact, Art. 152 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the possibility of demanding a refutation takes place solely with respect to denigrating data. Here it is necessary to say that it arises regardless of the way in which information is made public. At the request of interested subjects, a refutation is possible after the death of a person. Harmful information should not cause damage not only to the person himself, but also to his relatives, as well as to other participants in the relationship. The legislator provides an indefinite range of eligible complainants, using the normal expression "at the request of interested entities".

Specificity of refutation

Information that does not correspond to reality can be published in the media. Accordingly, in them they must be refuted. If such information is contained in a document, it must be withdrawn or replaced. The definition of the order of refutation of information in other cases refers to the decisions of the courts. According to Art. 152 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the subject, in relation to which the media was disseminated data that does not correspond to reality, has the opportunity to publish the answer. Here it is necessary to note an important point. This norm refers to information defaming honor, dignity, reputation, and data that infringes on the rights and interests of the subject. In the first case, it is established that a refutation is published in the same media, and in the second case, a person has the opportunity to make public his response.

General rules

According to Art. 208 Civil Code on claims for the protection of intangible rights does not apply limitation of actions, except as stipulated in the law cases. If it is not possible to identify a person who has disseminated defamatory information, the victim may file an application for recognition of it as untrue. If the obliged subject does not comply with the decision taken in favor of the victim, the court may impose a monetary penalty. The size and the procedure for collection shall be established in accordance with the CCP. Legislation also stipulates the possibility of reimbursement of material and moral harm to the victim, which arose as a result of the dissemination of defamatory data.

conclusions

Thus, protection of the honor, dignity and business reputation of a citizen can be carried out in several ways. First of all, he can present a demand for a refutation of denigrating information. It involves bringing to the persons, among whom it was distributed, data on the recognition of it as untrue. In addition, the protection of dignity, honor and business reputation is carried out through recovery from the perpetrator of moral and material harm. Under the first one understand the recognition of emotional or physical suffering.

Characteristic of moral damage

Harm in civil law is understood as unfavorable changes in the good protected by law. Damage can be non-property and property. In this case, the emergence of the latter does not mean that the sufferings and experiences of the victim do not appear. In this aspect, these categories are interdependent in a certain sense. As a result of the diminution of dignity and honor, as well as the reputation of individuals, moral damage occurs and it is compensable. This rule is set art. 151 of the Civil Code. Moral damage implies, first of all, different emotional, moral experiences caused by the violation. This harm often makes one suffer more sharply than property damage. Without causing material damage, he causes severe mental pain. Moral harm is accompanied by a violation of mental well-being, emotional balance of personality. It follows that he is accompanied by suffering psychological or physical suffering, as well as a narrowing of the individual's freedom and, therefore, can not remain outside the legal sphere. Moral harm is mentioned in various norms of legislation. For example, it is specified in art. 1099-1101, 152, 12, 151 GK. Legal assessment of the nature of this harm is fixed in Art. 151. Clarifications on this issue are also given in the Decision of the Plenum of the Armed Forces No. 10. Paragraph 2 of this document, in particular, states that moral or physical harm should be regarded as physical or moral suffering caused by inaction / actions that encroach on the intangibles Persons by force of law or from birth or violating its property or non-property (personal) rights. This condition can be due to various reasons. For example, suffering can be caused by the loss of relatives, the inability to continue active participation in social life, loss of work, temporary restriction / deprivation of liberty, disclosure of secrecy (medical, family), dissemination of information that does not correspond to reality.

Specificity of compensation

The duty of the offender to compensate for the moral damage caused by his behavior acts as a measure of responsibility. It has a preventive (preventive) meaning in the sphere of personal protection. Protection of dignity, honor and business reputation by collecting moral harm can be carried out in various ways. The legislation, in particular, provides for compensation:

1. For the dissemination of data that does not correspond to reality, denigrating a legal entity. This method is provided for in paragraph 7 of Art. 152.
2. For the dissemination of information, denigrating the subject without regard to the fault of the cause of harm.
3. In case of violation of non-property rights of a citizen or in violation of intangible benefits available to him, as well as in other cases established by law.

The recovery of moral damage is made exclusively in money. The amount is set according to the nature of the physical and psychological suffering that has been inflicted on the person, as well as the extent of the offender's fault when it acts as the basis for applying this method of protection.

Nuances

Considering the features of protection of honor, dignity and business reputation, it should be noted that in determining the amount of compensation, the principles of fairness and reasonableness, the level of emotional and physical suffering that are related to the individual qualities of the subject who is the victim should be taken into account. The inability to accurately determine the amount of money or another equivalent can not act as an obstacle to making decisions on compensation for moral damage. In accordance with the rules, the victim independently assesses the severity of the harm caused to him and indicates a specific amount in his claim.

Excitation of production

Legislation proceeds from the inadmissibility of arbitrary intrusion into someone's private life, the need for free and unhindered implementation by entities of their legal capabilities, ensuring their restoration in case of violation. The protection of citizens' rights acts as a fundamental principle and is guaranteed by the state. The legislation provides for certain measures of state enforcement. They are aimed at protecting the freedoms and interests of the subjects, eliminating the negative consequences that have arisen from their violation. These measures are implemented in the course of civil litigation. Norms establish the order in accordance with which applications and complaints are processed. To initiate proceedings, the injured person must file a lawsuit. Protection of honor, dignity and business reputation acts as a constitutional subjective legal opportunity. It is realized through a certain complex of powers. In particular, it is envisaged to appeal to the court as a whole and to a specific instance, the possibility to count on an objective review of the claims, and to make an informed and lawful decision. In addition, the protection of the rights of citizens is carried out in the order of appeal and cassation. Of no less importance is the mandatory implementation of the decision.

Specificity of presentation of requirements

According to the norms of the legislation, protection of dignity, honor and business reputation can be carried out by any entity whose intangible benefits were infringed. It should be borne in mind that the reporting of denigrating information to the person to whom it relates will not act as the dissemination of this data. In such cases, the protection of dignity, honor and business reputation can be carried out according to the norms of criminal legislation. In particular, the subject may be guided by the provisions of Art. 130 CC. In this situation, there is an insult inflicted in the absence of dissemination of information about the victim to third parties. For example, the perpetrator showed an indecent gesture, sent a victim a letter with obscene expressions and so on. These actions diminish human dignity and give rise to the right not only to initiate proceedings, but also to compensate for moral damage.

Protection of intangible benefits in the Internet

In the information space it is very easy to spoil the reputation, to harm the dignity and honor of the subject. To this end, a variety of means are used. This and a variety of forums, news feeds, message boards. Quite often on the websites there are references to the bad faith of those or other organizations, substandard services. As a result of defamation of reputation, potential customers are lost, financial losses occur. At present, the problems of protecting honor, dignity and business reputation in the Internet are quite acute. First of all, this is due to the lack of a clear regulatory regulation of relations in the information sphere. The dissemination of information on the Internet is considered a relatively new way of publicizing certain data. Therefore, there is no sufficient practice to consider disputes arising in connection with the publication of unreliable, denigrating information. In addition, experts who provide legal assistance to the subjects are often incompetent. For example, a civil affairs lawyer has experience in upholding the interests of a person who has been violated by traditional means, but he may not have sufficient practice to participate in proceedings related to dissemination of denigrating data on the network. As a result, illegal actions remain virtually unpunished.

Gaps in the regulatory framework

The protection of dignity, honor and business reputation in the Internet should be effective and based on the norms of legislation. However, for this it is not enough to announce that the rules concerning the dissemination of information in traditional media also apply to electronic platforms. In the dispute settlement, it should be borne in mind that if the defamatory information was published on a resource registered as a media, it is necessary to be guided by the relevant norms. Namely, those provisions that regulate the activities of television, radio companies, printed publications. The list of "traditional" media is specified in art. 2 of the Federal Law "On Mass Media". Thus, with a single dissemination of data that does not have a periodicity feature, the provisions of this Law are not applicable. The Federal Law "On Mass Media" links the permanent name of the publication to the medium of mass media. Its change involves a rather complicated procedure. For the Internet site, everything is much simpler - the "traditional" rules do not work here. If we talk about the form of information, there are no strict requirements for this. The law in the definition of the media indicates, in addition to traditional, and "other publications." This term can be called not only an electronic version of the paper edition, but also not having paper forms of resources. The fact of their existence only in digital form does not exclude their classification as a media category. From all that has been said, it follows that the said Law does not completely solve the problems that arise with the dissemination of information in virtual publications.

Legal practice

It should be noted that instances of general jurisdiction, as well as arbitrations, often have difficulties in resolving disputes arising from the dissemination of information on the Internet. Moreover, not every civil affairs lawyer will undertake to assist the injured subject. Among the main difficulties should be highlighted the difficulty in identifying persons who can be held liable and will have to pay compensation for the damage. In addition, there is the problem of fixing evidence, recognizing their reliability and admissibility. On the Internet, people have the opportunity to be anonymous. This greatly complicates the identification of authors, sources of discrediting information. To prove the spread of denigrating information, it is necessary to conduct a number of complicated procedures. As a result, it is very often impossible to establish the guilty party. All these problems require solution. For this, appropriate additions to the existing legislative framework are necessary.