Abstract. Authors of legal research and drafters of legislation constantly turn to and actively use foreign experience; law schools offer special and basic courses in comparative law. However, legal theory and methodology of law, not to mention industry developments, practically do not address the substantive specifics of comparative law as a branch of knowledge, its methodology, limitations and possibilities of application. This article is dedicated to this scientific issue. In the evolutionary development of law, such phenomena as reception and legal transplantology and implantation are considered, the conditions for the application of comparative law are formulated and justified. Special attention is paid to the challenges and requests addressed to comparative law at the present stage of development of the state and law. The author’s formed picture of the understanding and presentation of comparative law made it possible to present the shortcomings and insufficient elaboration of individual stages of reform of Russian civil legislation with a focus on the experience of “developed legal orders.” The issues discussed in the article are important for practical application and the legislative process, academic training and research work of legal scholars.