The article analyses the ideas of wellknown western and Ukrainian scientists — politologists and lawyers concerning the problem of interaction between the public institutions and state authorities in societies in the transition period. Under the condition of democracy deficit this process is rather contradictory and it threatens to twin democratic power into the hostage of corporate interests. Under these circumstances pluralistic democracy requires the effective legal mechanism of interaction between the state and public institutions, active public participation in the democratic process, the limitation of state power by human rights and freedoms and thus reaching concensus between the state and the public.