Kuwait · Overview
The legal system of Kuwait
A civil-law system on the Egyptian model with Sharia governing personal status, and historically the Gulf's most powerful elected legislature. The civil code follows the Egyptian Civil Code of 1949, which transmitted French civil-law structure into the Arab world, while personal status, succession and family matters remain governed by Sharia as applied by the courts. The National Assembly could interrogate and force the resignation of ministers, and its confrontations with the executive produced repeated dissolutions. In May 2024 the Emir dissolved the Assembly and suspended several constitutional articles for up to four years, assuming legislative power directly — so the constitutional position described here is materially different from the one that operated for the preceding six decades, and profiles that describe Kuwait as having an active elected legislature are now out of date.
Legal tradition
Kuwait belongs to the mixed (civil law and islamic law) tradition. A civil-law system on the Egyptian model with Sharia governing personal status, and historically the Gulf's most powerful elected legislature. The civil code follows the Egyptian Civil Code of 1949, which transmitted French civil-law structure into the Arab world, while personal status, succession and family matters remain governed by Sharia as applied by the courts. The National Assembly could interrogate and force the resignation of ministers, and its confrontations with the executive produced repeated dissolutions. In May 2024 the Emir dissolved the Assembly and suspended several constitutional articles for up to four years, assuming legislative power directly — so the constitutional position described here is materially different from the one that operated for the preceding six decades, and profiles that describe Kuwait as having an active elected legislature are now out of date.
How power is divided
Unitary. Six governorates administered by appointed governors, with no legislative competence.
Where law comes from
- The 1962 Constitution
- Partially suspended since May 2024 as to the Assembly and legislative process.
- Emiri decrees and decree-laws
- The operative legislative instrument during the current suspension.
- Civil Code 1980 and Commercial Code 1980
- Egyptian-model codifications.
- Sharia
- Governs personal status; separate codes apply for Sunni and Ja'fari Shia communities.
- Constitutional Court judgments
- Binding and published; the principal check on legislative validity.
The legal profession
Advocacy is reserved to Kuwaiti nationals enrolled with the Ministry of Justice and the Kuwait Bar Association, with foreign lawyers acting as consultants and unable to appear; pleadings are in Arabic. Judges are appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council, and a significant proportion of the bench has historically been seconded from other Arab states. Notarial authentication at the Ministry of Justice is required for powers of attorney, property transfers and company formation documents.
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