Guinea-Bissau · Overview
The legal system of Guinea-Bissau
An unusual hybrid: Portuguese-tradition civil law inherited from colonial rule, combined with membership of the francophone OHADA and UEMOA systems, so commercial law is governed by French-language Uniform Acts while the civil and penal codes follow Portuguese models. Repeated coups have left institutions fragile.
Legal tradition
Guinea-Bissau belongs to the civil law (portuguese tradition) tradition. An unusual hybrid: Portuguese-tradition civil law inherited from colonial rule, combined with membership of the francophone OHADA and UEMOA systems, so commercial law is governed by French-language Uniform Acts while the civil and penal codes follow Portuguese models. Repeated coups have left institutions fragile.
How power is divided
Semi-presidential with a directly elected President, a Prime Minister accountable to the National People's Assembly, and a judiciary headed by the Supreme Court of Justice.
Where law comes from
- Constitution
- 1984 text as amended.
- OHADA Uniform Acts
- Directly applicable commercial law despite the Portuguese civil tradition.
- Codes
- Civil and penal codes on the Portuguese model.
- Laws and decree-laws
- Assembly statutes and government instruments.
- Customary law
- Widely applied in practice in rural personal and land matters.
The legal profession
Advogados admitted through the Ordem dos Advogados da Guiné-Bissau; the profession is small and concentrated in Bissau.
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