Abstract
<jats:p>The purpose of the study is to examine the concept of «family» as a legal institution that is characterized by a state-established form (state registration of marriage and legal registration of relations between parents and children) and content (family relations) based on the family values that have been established in society. The methodological basis was formed by general scientific methods and special methods of family law science: dialectical, axiological, analysis and synthesis, formal-logical. With their help, the essential features of the family as a legal phenomenon were revealed. Research results. A family as an institution of modern Russian law is a unity of the state-established form of family relations and the family relations themselves, which constitute its content. In a legal sense, a family is not only a special kind of relationship between its members, but also a form that gives rise to the legal status of a subject as a family member and presumes the existence of family relations. The formal characteristics of a family, such as the state registration of marriage and the established legal relationship between parents and children, cannot be ignored. They are primary, and without them, the family does not exist legally. However, the essential characteristics of the family as a legal institution are also determined by family relations, which are based on family values. Therefore, it is necessary to combine the axiological approach to defining the essential characteristics of the family with the legal approach. The normative consolidation of the system of family values in Russian society, including the concept of the family form, will be one of the factors contributing to the strengthening of the family. The prospects for research suggest further study of the essential characteristics of the family as a legal institution based on the analysis of Russian legislation and materials of law enforcement practice.</jats:p>