The legal system of
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
is a mix of the
civil law and the
common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
systems.
Language
Puerto Rico is the only current U.S. jurisdiction whose legal system operates primarily in a language other than
American English
American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the Languages of the United States, most widely spoken lan ...
: namely,
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
. Because the
U.S. federal government
The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fed ...
operates primarily in English, Puerto Rican attorneys are typically bilingual in order to litigate in English in
U.S. federal courts
The federal judiciary of the United States is one of the three branches of the federal government of the United States organized under the United States Constitution and laws of the federal government. The U.S. federal judiciary consists primari ...
and to litigate federal preemption issues in Puerto Rican courts.
Sources
United States Code
Title 48 of the United States Code
Title 48 of the United States Code outlines the role of United States territories and insular areas in the United States Code.
* : Bureau of Insular Affairs
* : Alaska
* : Hawaii
* : Puerto Rico
* : Philippine Islands
* : Panama Canal Zone
* : Vir ...
outlines the role of the United States Code to United States territories and insular areas such as Puerto Rico.
Leyes de Puerto Rico
Many of the Laws of Puerto Rico () are modeled after the
Spanish Civil Code
The Civil Code of Spain ( es, Código Civil), formally the Royal Decree of 24 July 1889 ( es, Real Decreto de 24 de julio de 1889) is the law that regulates the major aspects of Spanish civil law. It is one of the last civil codes in Continental ...
, which is part of the
Law of Spain
The Law of Spain is the legislation in force in the Kingdom of Spain, which is understood to mean Spanish territory, Spanish waters, consulates and embassies, and ships flying the Spanish flag in democratically elected institutions.
Characteristi ...
.
After the U.S. government assumed control of Puerto Rico in 1901, it initiated legal reforms resulting in the adoption of codes of criminal law, criminal procedure, and civil procedure modeled after those then in effect in
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. Although Puerto Rico has since followed the federal example of transferring criminal and civil procedure from statutory law to rules promulgated by the judiciary, several portions of its criminal law still reflect the influence of the
California Penal Code
The Penal Code of California forms the basis for the application of most criminal law, criminal procedure, penal institutions, and the execution of sentences, among other things, in the American state of California. It was originally enacted ...
.
Judicial system
The judicial branch is headed by the
Chief Justice of the
Puerto Rico Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico ( es, Tribunal Supremo de Puerto Rico) is the highest court of Puerto Rico, having judicial authority to interpret and decide questions of Puerto Rican law. The Court is analogous to one of the state supreme c ...
, which is the only appellate court required by the Constitution. All other courts are created by the
Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico
The Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico ( es, Asamblea Legislativa de Puerto Rico) is the territorial legislature of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, responsible for the legislative branch of the government of Puerto Rico. The Assembly is a bic ...
.
As Puerto Rico is under United States sovereignty, U.S. federal law applies in the territory, and cases of a federal nature are heard in the
United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico
The United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico (in case citations, D.P.R.; es, Tribunal del Distrito de Puerto Rico) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The court is ...
.
See also
*
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico) is the controlling government document of Puerto Rico. It is composed of nine articles detailing the structure of the government a ...
*
Gag Law (Puerto Rico)
Law 53 of 1948 better known as the Gag Law, ( es, Ley de La Mordaza) was an act enacted by the Puerto Rico legislature of 1948, with the purpose of suppressing the independence movement in Puerto Rico. The act made it a crime to own or display ...
*
Puerto Rico Tax and Customs Laws
Taxation in Puerto Rico consists of taxes paid to the United States federal government and taxes paid to the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Payment of taxes to the federal government, both personal and corporate, is done through ...
*
Puerto Rican citizenship and nationality
Puerto Rico is an island in the Caribbean region in which inhabitants were Spanish nationals from 1508 until the Spanish-American War in 1898, from which point they derived their nationality from United States law. Nationality is the legal mea ...
References
External links
Leyes de Puerto Rico on LexJuris.comPuerto Rico Resources Georgetown Law Library
The Georgetown University Law Center (Georgetown Law) is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment and ...
The Laws of Puerto Rico, and other downloads Office of Legislative Services to the Puerto Rico Legislative Assembly
Guide to Law Online: U.S. Puerto Rico Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
*
{{North America topic, Law of