Chapter M: Major infectious diseases (121)

Northern Mariana Islands
Philippine languages 24.4%, Chinese 23.4%,
Chamorro 22.4%, English 10.8%, other Pacific island languages 9.5%,
other 9.6% (2000 census)

Norway
Bokmal Norwegian (official), Nynorsk Norwegian (official),
small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities; note - Sami is official
in six municipalities

Oman
Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects

Pakistan
Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%,
Pashtu 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%,
English (official; lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most
government ministries), Burushaski, and other 8%

Palau
Palauan 64.7% official in all islands except Sonsoral
(Sonsoralese and English are official), Tobi (Tobi and English are
official), and Angaur (Angaur, Japanese, and English are official),
Filipino 13.5%, English 9.4%, Chinese 5.7%, Carolinian 1.5%,
Japanese 1.5%, other Asian 2.3%, other languages 1.5% (2000 census)

Panama
Spanish (official), English 14%; note - many Panamanians
bilingual

Papua New Guinea
Tok Pisin, English, and Hiri Motu are official
languages; some 860 indigenous languages spoken (over one-tenth of
the world's total)
note: Tok Pisin, a creole language, is widely used and understood;
English is spoken by 1%-2%; Hiri Motu is spoken by less than 2%

Paraguay
Spanish (official), Guarani (official)

Peru
Spanish 84.1% (official), Quechua 13% (official), Aymara 1.7%,
Ashaninka 0.3%, other native languages 0.7% (includes a large number
of minor Amazonian languages), other 0.2% (2007 Census)

Philippines
Filipino (official; based on Tagalog) and English
(official); eight major dialects - Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano,
Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinan

Pitcairn Islands
English (official), Pitkern (mixture of an 18th
century English dialect and a Tahitian dialect)

Poland
Polish (official) 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002
census)

Portugal
Portuguese (official), Mirandese (official - but locally
used)

Puerto Rico
Spanish, English

Qatar
Arabic (official), English commonly used as a second language

Romania
Romanian 91% (official), Hungarian 6.7%, Romany (Gypsy)
1.1%, other 1.2%

Russia
Russian (official), many minority languages

Rwanda
Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French
(official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in
commercial centers

Saint Barthelemy
French (primary), English

Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha
English

Saint Kitts and Nevis
English (official)

Saint Lucia
English (official), French patois

Saint Martin
French (official language), English, Dutch, French
Patois, Spanish, Papiamento (dialect of Netherlands Antilles)

Saint Pierre and Miquelon
French (official)

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
English, French patois

Samoa
Samoan (Polynesian) (official), English

San Marino
Italian

Sao Tome and Principe
Portuguese (official)

Saudi Arabia
Arabic (official)

Senegal
French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka

Serbia
Serbian 88.3% (official), Hungarian 3.8%, Bosniak 1.8%,
Romany (Gypsy) 1.1%, other 4.1%, unknown 0.9% (2002 census)
note: Romanian, Hungarian, Slovak, Ukrainian, and Croatian all
official in Vojvodina

Seychelles
Creole 91.8%, English 4.9% (official), other 3.1%,
unspecified 0.2% (2002 census)

Sierra Leone
English (official, regular use limited to literate
minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne
(principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole,
spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled
in the Freetown area, a lingua franca and a first language for 10%
of the population but understood by 95%)

Singapore
Mandarin (official) 35%, English (official) 23%, Malay
(official) 14.1%, Hokkien 11.4%, Cantonese 5.7%, Teochew 4.9%, Tamil
(official) 3.2%, other Chinese dialects 1.8%, other 0.9% (2000
census)

Sint Maarten
English 67.5% (official), Spanish 12.9%, Creole 8.2%,
Dutch 4.2% (official), Papiamento 2.2% (a
Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect), French 1.5%, other 3.5%
(2001 census)

Slovakia
Slovak (official) 83.9%, Hungarian 10.7%, Roma 1.8%,
Ukrainian 1%, other or unspecified 2.6% (2001 census)

Slovenia
Slovenian (official) 91.1%, Serbo-Croatian 4.5%, other or
unspecified 4.4%, Italian (official) Only in municipalities where
Hungarian national communities reside, Hungarian (official) Only in
municipalities where Hungarian national communities reside (2002
census)

Solomon Islands
Melanesian pidgin in much of the country is lingua
franca; English (official but spoken by only 1%-2% of the
population); 120 indigenous languages

Somalia
Somali (official), Arabic, Italian, English

South Africa
IsiZulu (official) 23.8%, IsiXhosa (official) 17.6%,
Afrikaans (official) 13.3%, Sepedi (offcial) 9.4%, English
(official) 8.2%, Setswana (official) 8.2%, Sesotho (official) 7.9%,
Xitsonga (official) 4.4%, other 7.2%, isiNdebele (official),
Tshivenda (official), siSwati (official) (2001 census)

Spain
Castilian Spanish (official) 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%,
Basque 2%, are official regionally

Sri Lanka
Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil
(national language) 18%, other 8%
note: English is commonly used in government and is spoken
competently by about 10% of the population

Sudan
Arabic (official), English (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie,
diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages
note: program of "Arabization" in process

Suriname
Dutch (official), English (widely spoken), Sranang Tongo
(Surinamese, sometimes called Taki-Taki, is native language of
Creoles and much of the younger population and is lingua franca
among others), Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), Javanese

Svalbard
Norwegian, Russian

Swaziland
English (official, government business conducted in
English), siSwati (official)

Sweden
Swedish (official), small Sami- and Finnish-speaking
minorities

Switzerland
German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 20.4%,
Italian (official) 6.5%, Serbo-Croatian 1.5%, Albanian 1.3%,
Portuguese 1.2%, Spanish 1.1%, English 1%, Romansch (official) 0.5%,
other 2.8% (2000 census)
note: German, French, Italian, and Romansch are all national and
official languages

Syria
Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian
widely understood; French, English somewhat understood

Taiwan
Mandarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects

Tajikistan
Tajik (official), Russian widely used in government and
business

Tanzania
Kiswahili or Swahili (official), Kiunguja (name for Swahili
in Zanzibar), English (official, primary language of commerce,
administration, and higher education), Arabic (widely spoken in
Zanzibar), many local languages
note: Kiswahili (Swahili) is the mother tongue of the Bantu people
living in Zanzibar and nearby coastal Tanzania; although Kiswahili
is Bantu in structure and origin, its vocabulary draws on a variety
of sources including Arabic and English; it has become the lingua
franca of central and eastern Africa; the first language of most
people is one of the local languages

Thailand
Thai, English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and
regional dialects

Timor-Leste
Tetum (official), Portuguese (official), Indonesian,
English
note: there are about 16 indigenous languages; Tetum, Galole,
Mambae, and Kemak are spoken by significant numbers of people

Togo
French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina
(the two major African languages in the south), Kabye (sometimes
spelled Kabiye) and Dagomba (the two major African languages in the
north)

Tokelau
Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English

Tonga
Tongan (official), English (official)

Trinidad and Tobago
English (official), Caribbean Hindustani (a
dialect of Hindi), French, Spanish, Chinese

Tunisia
Arabic (official and one of the languages of commerce),
French (commerce)

Turkey
Turkish (official), Kurdish, other minority languages

Turkmenistan
Turkmen (official) 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%

Turks and Caicos Islands
English (official)

Tuvalu
Tuvaluan (official), English (official), Samoan, Kiribati (on
the island of Nui)

Uganda
English (official national language, taught in grade schools,
used in courts of law and by most newspapers and some radio
broadcasts), Ganda or Luganda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo
languages, preferred for native language publications in the capital
and may be taught in school), other Niger-Congo languages,
Nilo-Saharan languages, Swahili, Arabic

Ukraine
Ukrainian (official) 67%, Russian 24%, other 9% (includes
small Romanian-, Polish-, and Hungarian-speaking minorities)

United Arab Emirates
Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu

United Kingdom
English
note: the following are recognized regional languages: Scots (about
30% of the population of Scotland), Scottish Gaelic (about 60,000 in
Scotland), Welsh (about 20% of the population of Wales), Irish
(about 10% of the population of Northern Ireland), Cornish (some
2,000 to 3,000 in Cornwall)

United States
English 82.1%, Spanish 10.7%, other Indo-European
3.8%, Asian and Pacific island 2.7%, other 0.7% (2000 census)
note: Hawaiian is an official language in the state of Hawaii

Uruguay
Spanish (official), Portunol, Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish
mix on the Brazilian frontier)

Uzbekistan
Uzbek (official) 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other
7.1%

Vanuatu
local languages (more than 100) 72.6%, pidgin (known as
Bislama or Bichelama) 23.1%, English (official) 1.9%, French
(official) 1.4%, other 0.3%, unspecified 0.7% (1999 Census)

Venezuela
Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects

Vietnam
Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a
second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area
languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)

Virgin Islands
English 74.7%, Spanish or Spanish Creole 16.8%,
French or French Creole 6.6%, other 1.9% (2000 census)

Wallis and Futuna
Wallisian 58.9% (indigenous Polynesian language),
Futunian 30.1%, French (official) 10.8%, other 0.2% (2003 census)

West Bank
Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many
Palestinians), English (widely understood)

Western Sahara
Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic

World
Mandarin Chinese 12.65%, Spanish 4.93%, English 4.91%, Arabic
3.31%, Hindi 2.73%, Bengali 2.71%, Portuguese 2.67%, Russian 2.16%,
Japanese 1.83%, Standard German 1.35%, Javanese 1.27% (2008 est.)
note: percents are for "first language" speakers only

Yemen
Arabic (official)

Zambia
Bemba 30.1% (official), Nyanja 10.7% (official), Tonga 10.6%
(official), Lozi 5.7% (official), Chewa 4.9%, Nsenga 3.4%, Tumbuka
2.5%, Lunda 2.2% (official), Kaonde 2% (official), Lala 2%, Luvale
1.7% (official), English 1.7% (official), other 22.5% (2000 Census)

Zimbabwe
English (official), Shona, Sindebele (the language of the
Ndebele, sometimes called Ndebele), numerous but minor tribal
dialects

======================================================================

@2100

Field Listing :: Legal system

This entry provides the description of a country's legal system; it
also includes information on acceptance of International Court of
Justice (ICJ) jurisdiction. The legal systems of nearly all
countries are generally modeled upon elements of five main types:
civil law (including French law, the Napoleonic Code, Roman law,
Roman-Dutch law, and Spanish law); common law (including United
State law); customary law; mixed or pluralistic law; and religious
law (including Islamic law). An additional type of legal system -
international law, which governs the conduct of independent nations
in their relationships with one another - is also addressed below.
The following list describes these legal systems, the countries or
world regions where these systems are enforced, and a brief
statement on the origins and major features of each.
Civil Law - The most widespread type of legal system in the world,
applied in various forms in approximately 150 countries. Also
referred to as European continental law, the civil law system is
derived mainly from the Roman Corpus Juris Civilus, (Body of Civil
Law), a collection of laws and legal interpretations compiled under
the East Roman (Byzantine) Emperor Justinian I between A.D. 528 and
565. The major feature of civil law systems is that the laws are
organized into systematic written codes. In civil law the sources
recognized as authoritative are principally legislation - especially
codifications in constitutions or statutes enacted by governments -
and secondarily, custom. The civil law systems in some countries are
based on more than one code.
Common Law - A type of legal system, often synonymous with "English
common law," which is the system of England and Wales in the UK, and
is also in force in approximately 80 countries formerly part of or
influenced by the former British Empire. English common law reflects
Biblical influences as well as remnants of law systems imposed by
early conquerors including the Romans, Anglo-Saxons, and Normans.
Some legal scholars attribute the formation of the English common
law system to King Henry II (r.1154-1189). Until the time of his
reign, laws customary among England's various manorial and
ecclesiastical (church) jurisdictions were administered locally.
Henry II established the king's court and designated that laws were
"common" to the entire English realm. The foundation of English
common law is "legal precedent" - referred to as stare decisis,
meaning "to stand by things decided." In the English common law
system, court judges are bound in their decisions in large part by
the rules and other doctrines developed - and supplemented over time
- by the judges of earlier English courts.
Customary Law - A type of legal system that serves as the basis of,
or has influenced, the present-day laws in approximately 40
countries - mostly in Africa, but some in the Pacific islands,
Europe, and the Near East. Customary law is also referred to as
"primitive law," "unwritten law," "indigenous law," and "folk law."
There is no single history of customary law such as that found in
Roman civil law, English common law, Islamic law, or the Napoleonic
Civil Code. The earliest systems of law in human society were
customary, and usually developed in small agrarian and
hunter-gatherer communities. As the term implies, customary law is
based upon the customs of a community. Common attributes of
customary legal systems are that they are seldom written down, they
embody an organized set of rules regulating social relations, and
they are agreed upon by members of the community. Although such law
systems include sanctions for law infractions, resolution tends to
be reconciliatory rather than punitive. A number of African states
practiced customary law many centuries prior to colonial influences.
Following colonization, such laws were written down and incorporated
to varying extents into the legal systems imposed by their colonial
powers.
European Union Law - A sub-discipline of international law known as
"supranational law" in which the rights of sovereign nations are
limited in relation to one another. Also referred to as the Law of
the European Union or Community Law, it is the unique and complex
legal system that operates in tandem with the laws of the 27 member
states of the European Union (EU). Similar to federal states, the EU
legal system ensures compliance from the member states because of
the Union's decentralized political nature. The European Court of
Justice (ECJ), established in 1952 by the Treaty of Paris, has been
largely responsible for the development of EU law. Fundamental
principles of European Union law include: subsidiarity - the notion
that issues be handled by the smallest, lowest, or least centralized
competent authority; proportionality - the EU may only act to the
extent needed to achieve its objectives; conferral - the EU is a
union of member states, and all its authorities are voluntarily
granted by its members; legal certainty - requires that legal rules
be clear and precise; and precautionary principle - a moral and
political principle stating that if an action or policy might cause
severe or irreversible harm to the public or to the environment, in
the absence of a scientific consensus that harm would not ensue, the
burden of proof falls on those who would advocate taking the action.
French Law - A type of civil law that is the legal system of France.
The French system also serves as the basis for, or is mixed with,
other legal systems in approximately 50 countries, notably in North
Africa, the Near East, and the French territories and dependencies.
French law is primarily codified or systematic written civil law.
Prior to the French Revolution (1789-1799), France had no single
national legal system. Laws in the northern areas of present-day
France were mostly local customs based on privileges and exemptions
granted by kings and feudal lords, while in the southern areas Roman
law predominated. The introduction of the Napoleonic Civil Code
during the reign of Napoleon I in the first decade of the 19th
century brought major reforms to the French legal system, many of
which remain part of France's current legal structure, though all
have been extensively amended or redrafted to address a modern
nation. French law distinguishes between "public law" and "private
law." Public law relates to government, the French Constitution,
public administration, and criminal law. Private law covers issues
between private citizens or corporations. The most recent changes to
the French legal system - introduced in the 1980s - were the
decentralization laws, which transferred authority from centrally
appointed government representatives to locally elected
representatives of the people.
International Law - The law of the international community, or the
body of customary rules and treaty rules accepted as legally binding
by states in their relations with each other. International law
differs from other legal systems in that it primarily concerns
sovereign political entities. There are three separate disciplines
of international law: public international law, which governs the
relationship between provinces and international entities and
includes treaty law, law of the sea, international criminal law, and
international humanitarian law; private international law, which
addresses legal jurisdiction; and supranational law - a legal
framework wherein countries are bound by regional agreements in
which the laws of the member countries are held inapplicable when in
conflict with supranational laws. At present the European Union is
the only entity under a supranational legal system. The term
"international law" was coined by Jeremy Bentham in 1780 in his
Principles of Morals and Legislation, though laws governing
relations between states have been recognized from very early times
(many centuries B.C.). Modern international law developed alongside
the emergence and growth of the European nation-states beginning in
the early 16th century. Other factors that influenced the
development of international law included the revival of legal
studies, the growth of international trade, and the practice of
exchanging emissaries and establishing legations. The sources of
International law are set out in Article 38-1 of the Statute of the
International Court of Justice within the UN Charter.
Islamic Law - The most widespread type of religious law, it is the
legal system enforced in over 30 countries, particularly in the Near
East, but also in Central and South Asia, Africa, and Indonesia. In
many countries Islamic law operates in tandem with a civil law
system. Islamic law is embodied in the sharia, an Arabic word
meaning "the right path." Sharia covers all aspects of public and
private life and organizes them into five categories: obligatory,
recommended, permitted, disliked, and forbidden. The primary sources
of sharia law are the Qur'an, believed by Muslims to be the word of
God revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel, and the
Sunnah, the teachings of the Prophet and his works. In addition to
these two primary sources, traditional Sunni Muslims recognize the
consensus of Muhammad's companions and Islamic jurists on certain
issues, called ijmas, and various forms of reasoning, including
analogy by legal scholars, referred to as qiyas. Shia Muslims reject
ijmas and qiyas as sources of sharia law.
Mixed Law - Also referred to as pluralistic law, mixed law consists
of elements of some or all of the other main types of legal systems
- civil, common, customary, and religious. The mixed legal systems
of a number of countries came about when colonial powers overlaid
their own legal systems upon colonized regions but retained elements
of the colonies' existing legal systems.
Napoleonic Civil Code - A type of civil law, referred to as the
Civil Code or Code Civil des Francais, forms part of the legal
system of France, and underpins the legal systems of Bolivia, Egypt,
Lebanon, Poland, and the US state of Louisiana. The Civil Code was
established under Napoleon I, enacted in 1804, and officially
designated the Code Napoleon in 1807. This legal system combined the
Teutonic civil law tradition of the northern provinces of France
with the Roman law tradition of the southern and eastern regions of
the country. The Civil Code bears similarities in its arrangement to
the Roman Body of Civil Law (see Civil Law above). As enacted in
1804, the Code addressed personal status, property, and the
acquisition of property. Codes added over the following six years
included civil procedures, commercial law, criminal law and
procedures, and a penal code.
Religious Law - A legal system which stems from the sacred texts of
religious traditions and in most cases professes to cover all
aspects of life as a seamless part of devotional obligations to a
transcendent, imminent, or deep philosophical reality. Implied as
the basis of religious law is the concept of unalterability, because
the word of God cannot be amended or legislated against by judges or
governments. However, a detailed legal system generally requires
human elaboration. The main types of religious law are sharia in
Islam, halakha in Judaism, and canon law in some Christian groups.
Sharia is the most widespread religious legal system (see Islamic
Law), and is the sole system of law for countries including Iran,
the Maldives, and Saudi Arabia. No country is fully governed by
halakha, but Jewish people may decide to settle disputes through
Jewish courts and be bound by their rulings. Canon law is not a
divine law as such because it is not found in revelation. It is
viewed instead as human law inspired by the word of God and applying
the demands of that revelation to the actual situation of the
church. Canon law regulates the internal ordering of the Roman
Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Anglican
Communion.
Roman Law - A type of civil law developed in ancient Rome and
practiced from the time of the city's founding (traditionally 753
B.C.) until the fall of the Western Empire in the 5th century A.D.
Roman law remained the legal system of the Byzantine (Eastern
Empire) until the fall of Constantinople in 1453. Preserved
fragments of the first legal text, known as the Law of the Twelve
Tables, dating from the 5th century B.C., contained specific
provisions designed to change the prevailing customary law. Early
Roman law was drawn from custom and statutes; later, during the time
of the empire, emperors asserted their authority as the ultimate
source of law. The basis for Roman laws was the idea that the exact
form - not the intention - of words or of actions produced legal
consequences. It was only in the late 6th century A.D. that a
comprehensive Roman code of laws was published (see Civil Law
above). Roman law served as the basis of law systems developed in a
number of continental European countries.
Roman-Dutch Law - A type of civil law based on Roman law as applied
in the Netherlands. Roman-Dutch law serves as the basis for legal
systems in seven African countries, as well as Guyana, Indonesia,
and Sri Lanka. This law system, which originated in the province of
Holland and expanded throughout the Netherlands (to be replaced by
the French Civil Code in 1809), was instituted in a number of
sub-Saharan African countries during the Dutch colonial period. The
Dutch jurist/philosopher Hugo Grotius was the first to attempt to
reduce Roman-Dutch civil law into a system in his Jurisprudence of
Holland (written 1619-20, commentary published 1621). The Dutch
historian/lawyer Simon van Leeuwen coined the term "Roman-Dutch law"
in 1652.
Spanish Law - A type of civil law, often referred to as the Spanish
Civil Code, it is the present legal system of Spain and is the basis
of legal systems in 12 countries mostly in Central and South
America, but also in southwestern Europe, northern and western
Africa, and southeastern Asia. The Spanish Civil Code reflects a
complex mixture of customary, Roman, Napoleonic, local, and modern
codified law. The laws of the Visigoth invaders of Spain in the 5th
to 7th centuries had the earliest major influence on Spanish legal
system development. The Christian Reconquest of Spain in the 11th
through 15th centuries witnessed the development of customary law,
which combined canon (religious) and Roman law. During several
centuries of Hapsburg and Bourbon rule, systematic recompilations of
the existing national legal system were attempted, but these often
conflicted with local and regional customary civil laws. Legal
system development for most of the 19th century concentrated on
formulating a national civil law system, which was finally enacted
in 1889 as the Spanish Civil Code. Several sections of the code have
been revised, the most recent of which are the penal code in 1989
and the judiciary code in 2001. The Spanish Civil Code separates
public and private law. Public law includes constitutional law,
administrative law, criminal law, process law, financial and tax
law, and international public law. Private law includes civil law,
commercial law, labor law, and international private law.
United States Law - A type of common law, which is the basis of the
legal system of the United States and that of its island possessions
in the Caribbean and the Pacific. This legal system has several
layers, more possibly than in most other countries, and is due in
part to the division between federal and state law. The United
States was founded not as one nation but as a union of 13 colonies,
each claiming independence from the British Crown. The US
Constitution, implemented in 1789, began shifting power away from
the states and toward the federal government, though the states
today retain substantial legal authority. US law draws its authority
from four sources: constitutional law, statutory law, administrative
regulations, and case law. Constitutional law is based on the US
Constitution and serves as the supreme federal law. Taken together
with those of the state constitutions, these documents outline the
general structure of the federal and state governments and provide
the rules and limits of power. US statutory law is legislation
enacted by the US Congress and is codified in the United States
Code. The 50 state legislatures have similar authority to enact
state statutes. Administrative law is the authority delegated to
federal and state executive agencies. Case law, also referred to as
common law, covers areas where constitutional or statutory law is
lacking. Case law is a collection of judicial decisions, customs,
and general principles that began in England centuries ago, that
were adopted in America at the time of the Revolution, and that
continue to develop today.
Country

Legal system

Afghanistan
based on mixed civil and sharia law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Akrotiri
the Sovereign Base Area Administration has its own court
system to deal with civil and criminal matters; laws applicable to
the Cypriot population are, as far as possible, the same as the laws
of the Republic of Cyprus

Albania
has a civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction; has accepted jurisdiction of the International
Criminal Court for its citizens

Algeria
socialist, based on French and Islamic law; judicial review
of legislative acts in ad hoc Constitutional Council composed of
various public officials including several Supreme Court justices;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

American Samoa
NA

Andorra
based on French and Spanish civil codes; no judicial review
of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Angola
based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law;
modified to accommodate political pluralism and increased use of
free markets; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Anguilla
based on English common law

Antarctica
Antarctica is administered through annual meetings -
known as Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings - which include
consultative member nations, non-consultative member nations,
observer organizations, and expert organizations; decisions from
these meetings are carried out by these member nations (with respect
to their own nationals and operations) in accordance with their own
national laws; more generally, access to the Antarctic Treaty area,
that is to all areas between 60 and 90 degrees south latitude, is
subject to a number of relevant legal instruments and authorization
procedures adopted by the states party to the Antarctic Treaty; note
- US law, including certain criminal offenses by or against US
nationals, such as murder, may apply extraterritorially; some US
laws directly apply to Antarctica; for example, the Antarctic
Conservation Act, 16 U.S.C. section 2401 et seq., provides civil and
criminal penalties for the following activities unless authorized by
regulation of statute: the taking of native mammals or birds; the
introduction of nonindigenous plants and animals; entry into
specially protected areas; the discharge or disposal of pollutants;
and the importation into the US of certain items from Antarctica;
violation of the Antarctic Conservation Act carries penalties of up
to $10,000 in fines and one year in prison; the National Science
Foundation and Department of Justice share enforcement
responsibilities; Public Law 95-541, the US Antarctic Conservation
Act of 1978, as amended in 1996, requires expeditions from the US to
Antarctica to notify, in advance, the Office of Oceans, Room 5805,
Department of State, Washington, DC 20520, which reports such plans
to other nations as required by the Antarctic Treaty; for more
information, contact Permit Office, Office of Polar Programs,
National Science Foundation, Arlington, Virginia 22230; telephone:
(703) 292-8030, or visit its website at www.nsf.gov

Antigua and Barbuda
based on English common law

Argentina
mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Armenia
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Aruba
based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law
influence

Ashmore and Cartier Islands
the laws of the Commonwealth of
Australia and the laws of the Northern Territory of Australia where
applicable apply

Australia
based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations; accepts International Criminal Court
jurisdiction with conditions

Austria
civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review of
legislative acts by the Constitutional Court; separate
administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Azerbaijan
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Bahamas, The
based on English common law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Bahrain
based on Islamic law and English common law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Bangladesh
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Barbados
English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Belarus
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Belgium
based on civil law system influenced by English
constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Belize
English law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Benin
based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Bermuda
English law

Bhutan
based on Indian law and English common law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Bolivia
based on Spanish law and Napoleonic Code; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; the 2009 Constitution incorporates
indigenous community justice into Bolivia's judicial system

Bosnia and Herzegovina
based on civil law system; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Botswana
based on Roman-Dutch law and local customary law; judicial
review limited to matters of interpretation; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Bouvet Island
the laws of Norway where applicable apply

Brazil
based on Roman codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

British Indian Ocean Territory
the laws of the UK where applicable
apply

British Virgin Islands
English law

Brunei
based on English common law; for Muslims, Islamic sharia law
supersedes civil law concerning Muslim marriages and inheritance;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Bulgaria
civil and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Burkina Faso
based on French civil law system and customary law; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Burma
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Burundi
based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Cambodia
primarily a civil law mixture of French-influenced codes
from the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC)
period, royal decrees, and acts of the legislature with influences
of customary law and remnants of communist legal theory; increasing
influence of common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with
reservations

Cameroon
based on French civil law system with common law influence;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Canada
based on English common law, except in Quebec, where civil
law system based on French law prevails; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Cape Verde
based on the legal system of Portugal; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Cayman Islands
British common law and local statutes

Central African Republic
based on French law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Chad
based on French civil law system and Chadian customary law; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Chile
based on Code of 1857 derived from Spanish law and subsequent
codes influenced by French and Austrian law; judicial review of
legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction; note - in June 2005, Chile completed overhaul of
its criminal justice system to a US-style adversarial system

China
based on civil law system; derived from Soviet and continental
civil code legal principles; legislature retains power to interpret
statutes; constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislation;
party organs exercise authority over judiciary; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Christmas Island
under the authority of the governor general of
Australia and Australian law

Clipperton Island
the laws of France where applicable apply

Cocos (Keeling) Islands
based upon the laws of Australia and local
laws

Colombia
based on Spanish law; a new criminal code modeled after US
procedures was enacted into law in 2004 and reached full
implementation in January 2008; judicial review of executive and
legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Comoros
French and Islamic law in a new consolidated code; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Congo, Democratic Republic of the
civil law based on Belgian law
with Napoleonic Civil Code influence; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Congo, Republic of the
based on French civil law system and
customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Cook Islands
based on New Zealand law and English common law

Coral Sea Islands
the laws of Australia where applicable apply

Costa Rica
based on Spanish civil law system; judicial review of
legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Cote d'Ivoire
based on French civil law system and customary law;
judicial review in the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Croatia
based on Austro-Hungarian law system with Communist law
influences; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Cuba
based on Spanish civil law and influenced by American legal
concepts with large elements of Communist legal theory; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Curacao
based on Dutch civil law system with some English common law
influence

Cyprus
based on English common law with civil law modifications;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Czech Republic
civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes;
legal code modified to bring it in line with European Union
obligations and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Denmark
civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Dhekelia
the Sovereign Base Area Administration has its own court
system to deal with civil and criminal matters; laws applicable to
the Cypriot population are, as far as possible, the same as the laws
of the Republic of Cyprus

Djibouti
based on French civil law system, traditional practices,
and Islamic law; accepts ICJ compulsory jurisdiction with
reservations

Dominica
based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Dominican Republic
based on French civil codes; Criminal Procedures
Code modified in 2004 to include important elements of an accusatory
system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Ecuador
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Egypt
based on Islamic and civil law (particularly Napoleonic
codes); judicial review by Supreme Court and Council of State
(oversees validity of administrative decisions); accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

El Salvador
based on civil and Roman law with traces of common law;
judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Equatorial Guinea
partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal
custom; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Eritrea
primary basis is the Ethiopian legal code of 1957 with
revisions; new civil, commercial, and penal codes have not yet been
promulgated; government also issues unilateral proclamations setting
laws and policies; also relies on customary and
post-independence-enacted laws and, for civil cases involving
Muslims, Islamic law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Estonia
based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Ethiopia
based on civil law; currently transitional mix of national
and regional courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

European Union
comparable to the legal systems of member states;
first supranational law system

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)
English common law

Faroe Islands
the laws of Denmark where applicable apply

Fiji
based on British system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Finland
civil law system based on Swedish law; the president may
request the Supreme Court to review laws; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

France
civil law system with indigenous concepts; review of
administrative but not legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

French Polynesia
the laws of France where applicable apply

French Southern and Antarctic Lands
the laws of France where
applicable apply

Gabon
based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial
review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme
Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Gambia, The
based on a composite of English common law, Islamic law,
and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with
reservations

Georgia
based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Germany
civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review
of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Ghana
based on English common law and customary law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Gibraltar
the laws of the UK where applicable apply

Greece
based on codified Roman law; judiciary divided into civil,
criminal, and administrative courts; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Greenland
the laws of Denmark where applicable apply

Grenada
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Guam
modeled on US; US federal laws apply

Guatemala
civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Guernsey
the laws of the UK where applicable apply; justice is
administered by the Royal Court

Guinea
based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Guinea-Bissau
based on French civil law; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Guyana
based on English common law with certain admixtures of
Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Haiti
based on Roman civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Heard Island and McDonald Islands
the laws of Australia where
applicable apply

Holy See (Vatican City)
based on Code of Canon Law and revisions to
it; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Honduras
rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law with increasing
influence of English common law; recent judicial reforms include
abandoning Napoleonic legal codes in favor of the oral adversarial
system; accepts ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Hong Kong
based on English common law

Hungary
based on the German-Austrian legal system; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Iceland
civil law system based on Danish law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

India
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative
acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations;
separate personal law codes apply to Christians, Hindus, and Muslims

Indonesia
based on Roman-Dutch law, substantially modified by
indigenous concepts and by new criminal procedures and election
codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Iran
based on sharia law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Iraq
based on European civil and Islamic law under the framework
outlined in the Iraqi Constitution; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Ireland
based on English common law substantially modified by
indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme
Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Isle of Man
the laws of the UK where applicable apply and Manx
statutes

Israel
mixture of English common law, British Mandate regulations,
and in personal matters Jewish, Christian, and Muslim legal systems;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Italy
based on civil law system; appeals treated as new trials;
judicial review under certain conditions in Constitutional Court;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Jamaica
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Jan Mayen
the laws of Norway where applicable apply

Japan
modeled after European civil law systems with English-American
influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Jersey
the laws of the UK where applicable apply and local statutes;
justice is administered by the Royal Court

Jordan
based on Islamic law and French codes; judicial review of
legislative acts in a specially provided High Tribunal; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Kazakhstan
based on Islamic law and Roman law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Kenya
based on Kenyan statutory law, Kenyan and English common law,
tribal law, and Islamic law; judicial review in High Court; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; constitutional
amendment of 1982 making Kenya a de jure one-party state repealed in
1991

Kiribati
English common law supplemented by local, customary law;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Korea, North
based on Prussian civil law system with Japanese
influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of
legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Korea, South
combines elements of continental European civil law
systems, Anglo-American law, and Chinese classical thought; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Kosovo
evolving legal system based on terms of former UN Special
Envoy Martti AHTISAARI's Plan for Kosovo's supervised independence;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Kuwait
civil law system with Islamic law significant in personal
matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Kyrgyzstan
based on French and Russian laws; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Laos
based on traditional customs, French legal norms and
procedures, and socialist practice; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Latvia
based on civil law system with traces of Socialist legal
traditions and practices; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Lebanon
mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and
civil law; the constitutional court reviews laws only after they
have been passed; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Lesotho
based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial
review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Liberia
dual system of statutory law based on Anglo-American common
law for the modern sector and customary law based on unwritten
tribal practices for indigenous sector; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Libya
based on Italian and French civil law systems and Islamic law;
separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for judicial
review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Liechtenstein
local civil and penal codes based on civil law system;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Lithuania
based on civil law system; legislative acts can be
appealed to the constitutional court; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Luxembourg
based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Macau
based on Portuguese civil law system

Macedonia
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative
acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Madagascar
based on French civil law system and traditional Malagasy
law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Malawi
based on English common law and customary law; judicial
review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Malaysia
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative
acts in the Supreme Court at request of supreme head of the
federation; Islamic law is applied to Muslims in matters of family
law and religion; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Maldives
based on Islamic law with admixtures of English common law
primarily in commercial matters; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Mali
based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial
review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Malta
based on English common law and Roman civil law; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Marshall Islands
based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the
legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Mauritania
a combination of Islamic law and French civil law; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Mauritius
based on French civil law system with elements of English
common law in certain areas; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
with reservations

Mayotte
the laws of France where applicable apply

Mexico
mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system;
judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Micronesia, Federated States of
based on adapted Trust Territory
laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary
laws; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Moldova
based on civil law system; Constitutional Court reviews
legality of legislative acts and governmental decisions of
resolution; accepts many UN and Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) documents; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Monaco
based on French law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Mongolia
blend of Soviet and German systems that employ
"continental" or "civil" code; case-precedent may be used to inform
judges, but all decisions must refer to the law as written;
constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislative acts; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Montenegro
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Montserrat
English common law and statutory law

Morocco
based on Islamic law and French and Spanish civil law
systems; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional
Chamber of Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Mozambique
based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Namibia
based on Roman-Dutch law and 1990 constitution; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Nauru
acts of the Nauru Parliament and British common law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Navassa Island
the laws of the US where applicable apply

Nepal
based on Hindu legal concepts and English common law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Netherlands
based on civil law system incorporating French penal
theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the
States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

New Caledonia
based on French civil law; the 1988 Matignon Accords
grant substantial autonomy to the islands

New Zealand
based on English law, with special land legislation and
land courts for the Maori; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with
reservations

Nicaragua
civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative
acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Niger
based on French civil law system and customary law; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Nigeria
based on English common law, Islamic law (in 12 northern
states), and traditional law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
with reservations

Niue
English common law; note - Niue is self-governing with the
power to make its laws

Norfolk Island
based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and
acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either
Australian or Norfolk Island law

Northern Mariana Islands
based on US system except for customs,
wages, immigration laws, and taxation

Norway
mixture of customary law, civil law system, and common law
traditions; Supreme Court renders advisory opinions to legislature
when asked; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Oman
based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to
the monarch; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Pakistan
based on English common law with provisions to accommodate
Pakistan's status as an Islamic state; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Palau
based on Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature,
municipal, common, and customary laws; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Panama
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative
acts in the Supreme Court of Justice; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Papua New Guinea
based on English common law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Paraguay
based on Argentine codes, Roman law, and French codes;
judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court of Justice;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Peru
based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
with reservations

Philippines
based on Spanish and Anglo-American law; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Pitcairn Islands
local island by-laws

Poland
based on a mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and
holdover Communist legal theory; changes being gradually introduced
as part of broader democratization process; limited judicial review
of legislative acts, but rulings of the Constitutional Tribunal are
final; court decisions can be appealed to the European Court of
Justice in Strasbourg; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with
reservations

Portugal
based on civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal
reviews the constitutionality of legislation; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Puerto Rico
based on Spanish civil code and within the US Federal
system of justice

Qatar
based on Islamic and civil law codes; discretionary system of
law controlled by the Amir, although civil codes are being
implemented; Islamic law dominates family and personal matters; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Romania
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Russia
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative
acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Rwanda
based on German and Belgian civil law systems and customary
law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Saint Barthelemy
the laws of France, where applicable, apply

Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha
English common law and
statutes supplemented by local statutes

Saint Kitts and Nevis
based on English common law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Saint Lucia
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Saint Martin
the laws of France where applicable apply

Saint Pierre and Miquelon
the laws of France where applicable apply

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
based on English common law; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Samoa
based on English common law and local customs; judicial review
of legislative acts with respect to fundamental rights of the
citizen; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

San Marino
based on civil law system with Italian law influences;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Sao Tome and Principe
based on Portuguese legal system and customary
law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Saudi Arabia
based on sharia law, several secular codes have been
introduced; commercial disputes handled by special committees; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Senegal
based on French civil law system; judicial review of
legislative acts in Constitutional Court; the Council of State
audits the government's accounting office; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations

Serbia
based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction with reservations; note - Serbia is working to reform
its justice sector and harmonize its judicial systems with EU
standards

Seychelles
based on English common law, French civil law, and
customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Sierra Leone
based on English law and customary laws indigenous to
local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Singapore
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Sint Maarten
based on Dutch civil law system with some English
common law influence

Slovakia
civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; legal code modified
to comply with the obligations of Organization on Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal
theory

Slovenia
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Solomon Islands
English common law, which is widely disregarded; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Somalia
no national system; a mixture of English common law, Italian
law, Islamic sharia, and Somali customary law; accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

South Africa
based on Roman-Dutch law and English common law; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
the laws of the UK where
applicable apply; the senior magistrate from the Falkland Islands
presides over the Magistrates Court

Spain
civil law system with regional applications; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Sri Lanka
a highly complex mixture of English common law,
Roman-Dutch, Kandyan, and Jaffna Tamil law; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Sudan
based on English common law and Islamic law; as of 20 January
1991, the now defunct Revolutionary Command Council imposed Islamic
law in the northern states; Islamic law applies to all residents of
the northern states regardless of their religion; however, the CPA
establishes some protections for non-Muslims in Khartoum; some
separate religious courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with
reservations; the southern legal system is still developing under
the CPA following the civil war; Islamic law will not apply to the
southern states

Suriname
based on Dutch legal system incorporating French penal
theory; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Svalbard
the laws of Norway where applicable apply

Swaziland
based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts
and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Sweden
civil law system influenced by customary law; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Switzerland
civil law system influenced by customary law; judicial
review of legislative acts, except with respect to federal decrees
of general obligatory character; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
with reservations

Syria
based on a combination of French and Ottoman civil law;
Islamic law is used in the family court system; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Taiwan
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Tajikistan
based on civil law system; no judicial review of
legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Tanzania
based on English common law; judicial review of legislative
acts limited to matters of interpretation; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Thailand
based on civil law system with influences of common law;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Timor-Leste
On 29 March 2009 the president promulgated the
Timor-Leste penal code; UN-drafted legal system based on Indonesian
law remains in place for civil codes but is to be replaced by civil
codes based on Portuguese law; these have passed but have not been
promulgated; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Togo
French-based court system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
with reservations

Tokelau
New Zealand and local statutes

Tonga
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Trinidad and Tobago
based on English common law; judicial review of
legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction

Tunisia
based on French civil law system and Islamic law; some
judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court in joint
session; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Turkey
civil law system derived from various European continental
legal systems; note - member of the European Court of Human Rights
(ECHR), although Turkey claims limited derogations on the ratified
European Convention on Human Rights; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction

Turkmenistan
transitioning to civil law system and influenced by
Islamic law tradition; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Turks and Caicos Islands
based on laws of England and Wales with a
few adopted from Jamaica and The Bahamas

Tuvalu
English common law supplemented by local customary law; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Uganda
based on English common law and customary law; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations