The proposed research seeks to trace the relationship between the uses of emergency powers and the crisis of the rule of law in post-Soviet context with a focus on the case of the Russian Federation. Drawing on legal history, constitutional theory and jurisprudence, it purports to study how the contexts of crisis following the collapse of the Soviet Union have shaped the theory and praxis of emergency, and moreover, have affected the constitutional system and constitutional culture within Russia. The research will map historical uses of emergency powers as well as the socio-political context determining them, it will conduct analyses of constitutional, legislative and administrative provisions as well as political declarations, and trace patterns in legal development, contributing to the theory of emergency, comparative constitutional law and constitutional theory, by offering a historical analysis of the develompment of emergency powers in this context.