Abstract
<jats:p>This article presents a comparative legal study of the functional evolution of administrative law in the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China. It examines the shift from a classical “control paradigm” to dis-tinct modern models. The author identifies and contrasts the key features of Russia’s emerging “service state” model, focused on optimizing service delivery and increasing the efficiency of public administration, and the Chinese model of “development-oriented administrative law”, which treats law as an instrument for strategic socio-economic management. Analysis of doctrinal sources and legislative practices reveals fundamental dif-ferences in their goal-setting, conceptualization of the state’s role, functional priorities, and hierarchy of legal values. The study concludes that these models constitute divergent responses to contemporary governance challenges, reflecting distinct national development trajectories. Its findings contribute to the field of compara-tive administrative law and enhance understanding of modern transformations in public governance.</jats:p>