Topical Method of Interpretation of Contracts

The interpretation of contracts in Russia is a legal institution that is still evolving and has to overcome specific problems in this process. This suggests that a new original view of this legal institution could be relevant. In the author's opinion, a new approach to the old problem can be suggested by rhetoric, or rather a separate element of rhetoric - Topics. In the course of this work, the author’s main aim was to show the possibility and possible benefit of application of a topical method to the interpretation of civil law contracts. In order to achieve this, the history of Topics and the concept of “topoi” was analyzed, and the main features of the topical method in general were derived. The existing problems with the institution of interpretation of contracts in Russia were briefly shown and the possibility of using a topical method to the interpretation of contracts was proven in the context of Russian legal system. Asa result, the author came to the conclusion that the application of a topical method to the interpretation of contracts is possible, since the activities of a judge create suitable conditions for this. It was shown that a judge in a process of making a decision, has to deal with a multitude of facts, views and arguments, which is a clear attribute of the topical method. It was also concluded, that it is also most useful to search for topoi and compile catalogs on the topic of interpreting civil law contracts. This activity could have both methodological value for judges and serve as a research tool