The thesis peforms social-philosophical analysis of justice as a socialphenomenon and the basis in the ontological constitution of civil society in Western European countries and modern Ukraine. It studies peculiarities of the interpretation of justice in the historical tradition of philosophizing, genesis and conceptualization of the concept of justice from antiquity to the present, it also reveals essential features and principles. It is revealed that the onto-axiological content of the concept of "justice" is most often correlated with social equality, and in this context social justice is understood as a measure of equality and inequality in the distribution of material and spiritual goods, statuses and power, in the position of various social groups. It is proved that in the modern sense the problem of social justice is transformed into the problem of human rights as a conceptual basis of civil society, among which the right to decent living, freedom, self-realization, and equality of opportunity, equal access to social benefits, information and cultural values dominate. As a universal value, social justice extends to all spheres of public life, has socio-political, ethical, philosophical and religious dimensions.
It is proved that the affirmation of social justice, the formation of a social state and the formation of a civil society are interdependent processes. Social justice is the basis for the institutionalization of civil society, the fundamental principle of its functioning as an autonomous subject of social action and a direct mouthpiece for public interests and integrated public opinion. Civil society involves the recognition and protection of human rights and freedoms, creates the necessary conditions for its self-determination and self-realization, the formation of the individual as a conscious participant in socio-political processes, a full and responsible member of society. The implementation of the principles of social justice is embodied in a social-legal state.
The conceptual vision of the functional value of social justice and its new configurations in the conditions of global changes is generalized; the impact of justice on civil society strengthening in the age of globalization is analyzed; the significance of justice in the implementation of the concept of sustainable human development is researched. It is stated that it makes possible to overcome the anthropological and global crisis and to solve the problem of social injustice is only under condition of priority of the spiritual over the material, the formation of a humanistic world outlook.
It studies the features of social state development and civil society formation in modern Ukraine through the prism of the implementation of the basic principles of social justice. It confirms the existence of various forms and manifestations of injustice concerning almost all spheres of human life and society, social strata and strata of the population, territorial units and geographical centers.
It is substantiated that the development of effective mechanisms of the existence and development of civil society in Ukraine should be based on the maximum realization of the principles of social justice, strategic partnership in the format "power – business – public", actualization of civic activity. This requires a reorientation of the state system to the interests of the individual, increasing social responsibility and social obligations of business, the formation of a critical mass of free, active and responsible individuals within society.
