Procedures
French-derived procedure with a Cour de cassation and 30-year ordinary prescription
Civil procedure follows the French model with written submissions and judge-led instruction. The Cour de cassation reviews on points of law only. Ordinary prescription under the Malagasy civil law tradition is long — thirty years for real actions — with shorter commercial periods.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Tribunaux de Première Instance, Cours d'Appel, then the Cour de cassation; the Conseil d'État hears administrative appeals.
- Deadline — Appeal (appel): one month from notification in ordinary matters
- Deadline — Pourvoi en cassation: two months from notification
Governing law
- Code de procédure civile
- Loi 66-003 relative à la théorie générale des obligations
- Loi organique sur l'organisation judiciaire
In practice
Madagascar codified the general law of obligations separately in Loi 66-003 rather than retaining the French Civil Code wholesale, so contract and delict are argued from a Malagasy statute — another reason not to assume French Civil Code solutions apply.