Eswatini · Overview
The legal system of Eswatini
A genuinely dual system: Roman-Dutch common law and English procedure run in the modern courts while Swazi customary law and the traditional Tinkhundla structures operate in parallel with their own hierarchy. Marriage exists in two regimes, civil and customary, with materially different consequences for matrimonial property and succession, and the choice is frequently undocumented — the single most common source of practical difficulty for families and their advisers.
Legal tradition
Eswatini belongs to the mixed roman-dutch, english common law and swazi customary law tradition. A genuinely dual system: Roman-Dutch common law and English procedure run in the modern courts while Swazi customary law and the traditional Tinkhundla structures operate in parallel with their own hierarchy. Marriage exists in two regimes, civil and customary, with materially different consequences for matrimonial property and succession, and the choice is frequently undocumented — the single most common source of practical difficulty for families and their advisers.
How power is divided
Unitary with four regions and 55 tinkhundla constituencies that combine electoral and administrative functions. Chiefs administer Swazi Nation Land under the King as trustee.
Where law comes from
- Constitution
- Declared supreme, but read alongside preserved royal prerogative.
- King's Orders-in-Council and Acts
- Legislation may originate from Parliament or by royal decree.
- Roman-Dutch common law
- Substantive private law with English procedure.
- Swazi customary law
- Applied by the Swazi National Courts; governs land and much family matter.
- Case law
- Binding precedent from the Supreme Court downwards.
The legal profession
A fused profession of attorneys admitted by the High Court after a law degree and articles, regulated by the Law Society of Eswatini; advocates may be admitted separately for higher-court work.
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