Enshrining legal coercion as a prerogative of the rule of law

In the view of the researcher T. Honore [21], these elements form a narrower system than state coercion - this is the case of the legal relations of applying measures of coercion. In the structure of legal relations, such elements as the subject of coercion, the object of coercion and the process of its realization can be identified. In this respect, the author considers that the determination of the structure of coercion (of internal organization) is possible only if all the necessary and obligatory elements in its system are highlighted, without which state coercion cannot exist. Thus, in his view, coercion has the following structure: rules of law regulation, which set the legal obligations of the subjects of law; rules of law protection, which regulate the order of application of state coercion in order to ensure the execution of obligations; the legal fact - the factual basis of the application of coercion; the legal relationship of application (realization) of coercion; the result of the application of state coercion.

The author U. Chetru§ argues that state coercion is a legal relationship with a protective character. It arises between the State and the individual when the latter commits an unlawful act, in other words, any violation of the legal norm can give rise to a relationship of coercion, which is established between the State and the author of such violation [3, p. 75].

In this regard, author D. Cornean [6, p. 7-8] notes that the force of the law materializes in social life by means of a legal relationship of constraint, understood as a plurality of rights and obligations, of substantive or procedural law, which arise as a result of the commission of an unlawful act (non-compliance with the model prefigured by the norm) and through which the application of legal sanctions is achieved.

In the view of researcher D. K. Simes [25], coercion implies a relationship in which the governing subject - the competent body for the protection of legal norms or the public official - applies the measures of coercion to the subject obliged to bear and execute those measures, i.e. the governed subject. The importance of researching state coercion as a legal relationship lies in the fact that it makes it possible to examine the grounds on which these legal relationships arise, i.e. the legal facts underlying them, which are particularly important for the legality of coercion.

Conclusions. In conclusion, we argue that the following grounds are necessary for the application of coercion:

- the legal basis presupposes the presence of legal norms that provide for the possibility of applying coercion to certain subjects in concrete cases;

- the factual basis presupposes the occurrence of the legal event provided for in the law - the event or act which generated the legal relationship.

- the formal basis implies the issuing by the state body of the act of application of the law ordering the application of the constraint to a specific subject. In other words, coercion as a physical action is applied by special state bodies on the basis of a court decision or administrative act. In the absence of such acts, coercion cannot be exercised. Regarding the subjects, the author Gh. Costachi reiterates that the legal relationship of coercion is a power relationship, bilateral, one of the parties being necessarily a state body, a representative of the state. The other party to the legal relationship can be any subject to whom the power of the state extends.

We conclude that the legal coercion applied by the state must involve proportionate measures and sanctions, in such a way that, on the one hand, it creates the necessary inhibiting factors in the conscience of those who would try to break the law and, on the other hand, it strengthens the feeling of security in others, inspiring them with the conviction that the law, the state, protects them and that they should not resort to non-state, unofficial means in order to take the law into their own hands. It is absolutely essential that the application of coercion should not be used to infringe the rights and freedoms of individuals or to cause physical or mental suffering. We believe that only in such a situation will legal coercion contribute to the formation of the ethical attitude of citizens, increasing their psychological readiness to respect the law.

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