Annotation

The article analyzes the doctrinal transformation of the principle of unity of restrictions and requirements in state and municipal service, initiated by Ruling No. 8-P of February 13, 2020, of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation. The author examines the legal conflict arising from the formal interpretation of Article 5 of the Federal Law “On Municipal Service in the Russian Federation”, which leads to the absolutization of the principle and the automatic extension to municipal employees of all restrictions established for state civil servants. The study demonstrates that such an approach disregards the constitutional nature of local self-government and contradicts the updated constitutional model of a unified system of public power, entrenched in 2020. The central subject of the research is the legal position of the Constitutional Court, which, as the author argues, fundamentally alters the understanding of unity in public service. The Court rejected formal identity, establishing that unity does not imply the automatic transfer of restrictions. Of key importance are the Court's conclusions on the inadmissibility of unconditional dismissal of a municipal employee for concealing a spent (expunged) conviction, on the necessity of an individual assessment of all circumstances, and on the priority of the criteria of professionalism and integrity over formal attributes. The work gains particular relevance in the context of the new Federal Law No. 33-FZ of March 20, 2025, “On the General Principles of Organizing Local Self-Government in a Unified System of Public Power”.