The paper considers different concepts used in comparative and Croatian law in order to determine the legal nature of the general use of the public good. The active legitimacy of members of the community to exercise and protect their right to use the public good directly depends on the position taken in that argument. The aim of the paper is to emphasize the importance of a comprehensive approach regarding the legal qualification of general use, to offer answers to some unresolved doctrinal issues, as well as to provide guidelines for a systematic normative framework in accordance with the standards of protection of the public interest. In order to compare positive legal analysis of general use in the Republic of Croatia to that in other countries, the comparative research method was used as the main research method.