The legal system of Sudan
A genuinely mixed system, and one of the few places where English common law and Islamic law were fused institutionally rather than kept in separate compartments. The Anglo-Egyptian condominium left common-law procedure, a doctrine of judicial precedent and English-style commercial law; the September Laws of 1983 then Islamised the criminal law and much else, and the 1991 Criminal Act retained hudud punishments. The transitional government of 2019 to 2021 began reversing this — the Fundamental Rights Act of 2020 abolished the apostasy offence and public flogging, permitted non-Muslims to consume alcohol and ended the requirement of male guardian permission for women to travel with children. How much of that survives is unclear: the October 2021 coup removed the civilian government and the war that began in April 2023 has displaced the institutions that would apply it.
Legal tradition
Sudan belongs to the mixed islamic and common law tradition. A genuinely mixed system, and one of the few places where English common law and Islamic law were fused institutionally rather than kept in separate compartments. The Anglo-Egyptian condominium left common-law procedure, a doctrine of judicial precedent and English-style commercial law; the September Laws of 1983 then Islamised the criminal law and much else, and the 1991 Criminal Act retained hudud punishments. The transitional government of 2019 to 2021 began reversing this — the Fundamental Rights Act of 2020 abolished the apostasy offence and public flogging, permitted non-Muslims to consume alcohol and ended the requirement of male guardian permission for women to travel with children. How much of that survives is unclear: the October 2021 coup removed the civilian government and the war that began in April 2023 has displaced the institutions that would apply it.
How power is divided
Formally federal, with states headed by governors. The Juba Peace Agreement of 2020 contemplated regional arrangements for Darfur and the Two Areas. Effective authority is currently divided between the belligerents and varies by locality.
Where law comes from
- Constitutional Charter 2019
- Transitional instrument; superseded in practice by events since 2021.
- Islamic law
- Declared a source of legislation; the basis of personal status and of the 1991 Criminal Act's hudud provisions.
- Legislation
- Statutes and, since 2021, decrees of the governing authority.
- Judicial precedent
- A common-law inheritance retained through the condominium period and unusual in the region.
- Custom
- Recognised in family and land matters, particularly outside the riverine centre.
The legal profession
Advocates are admitted through the Sudanese Bar Association, and the profession — particularly the Sudanese Professionals Association and the emergency lawyers' groups — was central to the 2019 protest movement and to documenting subsequent abuses. Judges are career appointments through the Judicial Service Commission. Current admission practice and numbers cannot be reliably confirmed.
Law by topic in Sudan
- Property & LandRegistered title over a minority of land, with unregistered land vested in the stateThe Land Settlement and Registration Act 1925 established registration, and the Unregistered Land Act 1970 vested all unregistered land in the state. Customary holdings across much of the country therefore lack formal title, which is central to the Darfur conflicts.
- Employment & LabourThe 1997 Labour Act, in an economy where formal employment has largely collapsedThe Labour Act 1997 governs contracts, hours and termination for the formal private sector, with the Civil Service Act covering public employees. Formal employment was already a small minority of work before the 2023 war.
- Tax LawIncome tax, VAT and zakat as a parallel statutory obligationThe Income Tax Act 1986 and the Value Added Tax Act 1999 form the tax code, administered by the Taxation Chamber. Zakat is separately levied under the Zakat Act as a statutory obligation rather than a voluntary payment.
- Criminal LawThe 1991 Criminal Act, substantially amended in 2020, in a context of mass atrocityThe Criminal Act 1991 introduced hudud punishments and the public-order offences that defined the Bashir era. The 2020 amendments repealed apostasy, restricted flogging and criminalised FGM, but the current conflict features large-scale atrocity crimes.
- Constitutional LawA 2019 transitional document interrupted by a coup and then by warThe 2019 Constitutional Document, amended to incorporate the 2020 Juba Peace Agreement, was the transitional framework after Bashir's removal. The October 2021 coup displaced it and the war that began in April 2023 has made the operative constitutional position impossible to state.
- Business & CorporateA 2015 Companies Act and 2021 Investment Act, both overtaken by the war economyThe Companies Act 2015 and Investment Encouragement Act 2021 provide the formal framework, and the 1984 Civil Transactions Act supplies the law of obligations. Banking sector removal from the US state-sponsor list in 2020 briefly reopened correspondent relationships.
- Immigration & NationalityEntry law formally in force while the country is a mass displacement emergencyThe Passports and Immigration Act 2015 and the Asylum Act 2014 form the framework. Sudan has since become the site of one of the world's largest displacement crises, with millions internally displaced and large outflows to Chad and Egypt.
- Family LawThe 1991 Muslim Personal Status Act, partly reformed in 2020The Personal Status of Muslims Act 1991 governs marriage, divorce and succession for Muslims, with separate arrangements for non-Muslims. A 2020 reform criminalised FGM and repealed the public-order and apostasy provisions.
- Civil ProcedureA 1983 civil procedure act in an Anglo-Islamic hybrid, with courts displaced by warThe Civil Procedure Act 1983 governs, retaining English-derived structure. The Supreme Court sits at the apex, but court infrastructure in Khartoum has been extensively damaged and the judiciary displaced since April 2023.
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