The article states that due to its location, the history of Russia is closely connected with the East and the West, trade routes were laid through it, various agreements were concluded with it, and alliances were formed. Moreover, any political interaction between two different states contributes to the development of law in both. Legal systems have been formed in the world, with their own practical approach to various branches of law. Progress does not stand still: new laws appear in response to new technologies. It is necessary that each country has experts who are able to work with the law of other countries, and most importantly, interpret their own legislation. For the development of such skills, it is important to understand cause-and-effect relationships, and you cannot cope with this without turning to history. This explains the relevance of historical and legal analysis of the stages of domestic legal borrowing, its features and directions, as well as historical events that influenced the chosen course towards Western countries. The chronological framework of the article covers the period of 9th–17th centuries. The lower chronological boundary is mediated by the beginning of Russian law, the upper one is the formation of absolutism in Russia, before the great Western modernization of Peter the Great. The study of the development of the Rurikovich law makes it possible to understand at what point in history Russian law makes a bias in favor of the Western model and the reasons for this change.