Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
follows the "
civil law system
Civil law is a legal system originating in mainland Europe and adopted in much of the world. The civil law system is intellectualized within the framework of Roman law, and with core principles codified into a referable system, which serves as t ...
" modeled after the French legal system, Kuwait's legal system is largely secular.
law governs only
family law
Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations.
Overview
Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include:
* Marriage ...
for Muslim residents,
while non-Muslims in Kuwait have a secular family law. For the application of
family law
Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations.
Overview
Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include:
* Marriage ...
, there are three separate court sections:
Sunni (
Maliki
The ( ar, مَالِكِي) school is one of the four major schools of Islamic jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. It was founded by Malik ibn Anas in the 8th century. The Maliki school of jurisprudence relies on the Quran and hadiths as primary ...
),
Shia
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, mo ...
, and
non-Muslim. According to the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
, Kuwait's legal system is a mix of
English common law
English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures.
Principal elements of English law
Although the common law has, historically, be ...
,
French civil law,
Egyptian civil law and Islamic law.
The
court system in Kuwait is secular.
Unlike other
Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Kuwait does not have Sharia courts.
Sections of the civil court system administer family law.
Kuwait has the most secular
commercial law in the Gulf.
The state
Kuwait is a constitutional country with a parliamentary government. About 85% of Kuwait's population (2.8 million in 2013) are Muslims.
According to the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
, Kuwait's legal system is a mix of
British common law
English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures.
Principal elements of English law
Although the common law has, historically, b ...
,
French civil law,
Egyptian civil law and Islamic law.
[
]
Constitution and judges
Roughly half of Kuwait's judges are non-citizens—mainly Egyptians. The non-citizen judges are on one-year to three-year contracts. The Constitution of Kuwait makes Islam the state religion. The 1961 Press and Publications Law prohibits the publication of any material that incites persons to commit crimes, creates hatred, or spreads dissension.
See also
* Politics of Kuwait
References
{{Reflist
Law of Kuwait