The new conditions in which the largest states of the world were put by the COVID-19 pandemic, which required the broad masses of the population to stay at home, became a serious test for the education system, which was forced to reorganize as quickly as possible, urgently switching to distance learning. The article describes the experience of teaching the disciplines of the criminal law cycle for the students of the law faculty of Southwest State University (Kursk, Russia) in the context of an emergency transition to distance learning in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic and the introduction of high alert mode in the region. The main possible approaches to the implementation of educational programs in the context of the impossibility of personal contact between the teacher and students, as well as taking into account the need to work at home and use the available communication channels, are considered. It is concluded that although the emergency transition to the remote interaction of the teacher and students was successfully organized as a whole, the implementation of the training of lawyers completely on a remote basis is still undesirable. At the same time, the introduction of distance technology elements and the constant use by students of the university's electronic educational environment, encouraging the use of modern multimedia and communication technologies, interactive forms of discussion of lectures and practical classes, mutual verification of completed tasks, it is advisable to integrate into the normal educational process in order to increase its effectiveness.
