Does the legal institution for the protection of rationalization proposals have a future?

The Russian economy is faced with the tasks of technological renewal of the basic sectors of the economy, modernization of the scientific and technical base of scientific organizations and defense enterprises, and the formation of elements of a new technological order. Solving such problems requires the legal system to adequately regulate relations and maintain a balance of interests between economic entities and employees as participants in technological transformations. Society needs legal institutions that would facilitate the involvement of employees in the modernization of organizations and enterprises. Similar tasks were solved by the Soviet economy, and the Institute for legal protection of rationalization proposals functioned in the USSR. The purpose of this work is to determine the possibility and expediency of including in Russian legislation the legal norms in force in the USSR on innovation, on the protection of rationalization proposals. In preparing the article, the institute for the protection of rationalization proposals was considered as a phenomenon at the intersection of economics and law. General scientific, private scientific and private law methods were applied, as well as institutional and neo-institutional approaches. The provisions of regulatory legal acts on the protection of rationalization proposals in the USSR, Russian legislation in the field of intellectual property rights, the model law of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) on rationalization activities, the provisions of regulatory acts of organizations on rationalization proposals and on bonuses for rationalization proposals, scientific publications are analyzed. As a result, the conditions and features of functioning of the institute of legal protection of rationalization proposals in the USSR were identified, and the problems of the institute of rationalization proposals during the transition period during the formation of new socio-economic conditions were shown. The local nature of the rationalization proposals came into conflict with the absolute nature of the exclusive right, with the need not to violate the exclusive rights of others when using the proposals. The author concludes that it is impossible and untimely to restore the institution of protection of rationalization proposals in the legal system. In modern conditions, for business entities, organizations and enterprises, instead of restoring the protection of rationalization proposals at the state level, it is necessary to use the legal regime for the protection of production secrets (know-how) when collecting, reviewing and using employee proposals for industrial and organizational improvements, creating an internal corporate environment for innovative development, a system of incentives and bonuses for personnel, linked to the effectiveness of the consideration of proposals.

1. Yurgina, E. E. (2025), “How to increase staff interest in creative activities and the implementation of rationalization proposals”, Normirovaniye i Oplata Truda v Promyshlennosti, no. 4 (260), pp. 28–31.

2. Novikova, N. A. (2019), “Innovation proposals in the system of protected objects of intellectual rights”, Agrarian and land law, no. 9 (177), pp. 4–7.

3. Mikhailov, A. E. (2021), “Innovativeness of changes in the legal protection of rationalization proposals in Russia (doctrine, practice, technique)”, Yuridicheskaya Tekhnika, no. 15, pp. 376–384.

4. Poznansky, V. S. (1960), “On the development of mass worker invention and rationalization in the USSR”, Vop­ rosy Istorii, no. 3, pp. 138–153.

5. Alekseev, G. M. (1969), “Movement of inventors and innovators in the USSR”, Voprosy Istorii, no. 9, pp. 30–48.

6. Sagdeeva G. S., Sagdeev, A. A. and Rakhmatullin, D. R. (2017), “History of organization of invention and rationalization”, Aktual’nyye Problemy Gumanitarnykh i Yestestvennykh Nauk, no. 4–5, pp. 68–70.

7. Pinaeva, D. A. (2024), “Mass Inventiveness in the USSR (1954–1990): an evaluation of effectiveness”, Nauchnyi Dialog, no. 13 (8), pp. 482–504.

8. Karpova, E. V., Kiva-Khamzina, Yu. L. and Rubanova, N. A. (2019), “Rationalization activities: aspects of civil and labor law”, Matters of Russian and International Law, Vol. 9, no. 2A, pp. 235–243.

9. Baurina, S. B. (2018), “Kaizen and rationalization as tools for the development of production systems: the procedure for registration and design”, STUDIUM, no. 2 (47), p. 2.

10. Danilova, A. S. and Mikhailova, N. S. (2023), “Organizational and managerial mechanism for introducing innovations into railway industry enterprises: rationalization activities”, Journal of Economy and Entrepreneurship, no. 5, pp. 245–248.

11. Zhalevich, A. (2008), “Optimization of expenses at the enterprise during the crisis”, Korporativnyy Menedzhment, available at: https://www.cfin.ru/management/finance/cost/crisis_optimization.shtml (accessed: 27 June 2025).

12. Shaburishvili, M. V. (2003), “Innovation activity as the implementation of the innovation process on an organizational scale”, Korporativnyy Menedzhment, available at: https://www.cfin.ru/bandurin/article/sbrn03/11.shtml (accessed: 27 June 2025).

13. Nesiolovsky A. (2008), “Lean Manufacturing: An Integrated Approach”, Korporativnyy Menedzhment, available at: https://www.cfin.ru/management/manufact/lean_complex.shtml (accessed: 27 June 2025).

14. Chaikov, M. Yu. (2009), “Increasing competitiveness by improving rationalization activities at the enterprise”, Journal of Marketing in Russia and Abroad, no. 5, pp. 73–79.

15. Sidorova, E. V. and Melnikova, E. V. (2017), “Managing Technological Change”, Grani Poznaniya, no. 4 (51), pp. 83–87.

16. Karamyshev, A. N., Kazaeva, M. S., Abrosimova, E. V. and Fedorov, D. F. (2017), “Analysis of the process methodology of management “six sigma”, The Bulletin of BSTU named after V. G. Shukhov, no. 4, pp. 160–163.

17. Razzhivin, V. A. and Udaltsova, N. L. (2024) “The impact of lean manufacturing concepts on industrial process efficiency and waste reduction”, Leadership and Management, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 1405–1418.

18. Zagulyaev, D. G., Ivanova, T. N. and Mishchenkova, O. V. (2023), ”Production rationalization – effective alternative to “lean production”, Intellectual Property. Industrial Property, no. 1, pp. 57–62.

19. Bystrova, O. L. and Kichigina, E. G. (2019), “Application of rationalization proposals to reduce costs in Trans­ energo”, Transportnaya Infrastruktura Sibirskogo Regiona, no. 2, pp. 135–138.

20. Rakhmatullin, R. R. and Khuzina, L. B. (2019), “Application of rationalized proposals for the construction of wells”, Uchenyye zapiski Al’met’yevskogo gosudarstvennogo neftyanogo instituta, vol. 18, pp. 30–33.