Legal codes and constitutions: who copied whom

c. 2100 BCE · Early law

Code of Ur-Nammu

Ur (Sumer)

A collection of laws in Sumerian, issued under King Ur-Nammu, that sets out fines for injuries and rules on marriage, slaves and false accusations.

Shaped 1 later text

c. 1750 BCE · Early law

Code of Hammurabi

Babylon

A collection of nearly three hundred laws carved on a stone pillar by the Babylonian king Hammurabi, covering trade, property, family and crimes.

Built on 1 earlier text

c. 450 BCE · Early law

The Twelve Tables

Rome

The first written statement of Roman law, displayed in public so that ordinary Romans could know the rules on debt, family, property and procedure.

Shaped 2 later texts

c. 200 BCE to 200 CE · Early law

Laws of Manu (Manusmriti)

India

A Sanskrit text on dharma, that is, on duty and right conduct, with rules on family, inheritance, crime, the king's duties and religious practice.

c. 161 CE · Early law

Institutes of Gaius

Rome

A short textbook of Roman law for students, arranged under persons, things and actions.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

529 to 534 · Early law

Corpus Juris Civilis (Justinian's Code)

Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire

The Emperor Justinian ordered Roman law to be gathered and organised into the Code, the Digest, the Institutes and later laws.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 4 later texts

653 · Early law

Tang Code

China

A complete code of criminal and administrative law of the Tang dynasty, with an official commentary that explains each article.

Shaped 2 later texts

701 · Early law

Taihō Code

Japan

Japan's first full code of criminal and administrative law (the ritsuryō system), which set up a central government on the Chinese pattern.

Built on 1 earlier text

1215 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Magna Carta

England

A charter agreed by King John and his barons, promising that the king himself must obey the law and that no free man should be punished without lawful judgment.

Shaped 1 later text

1689 · Charters, declarations and treaties

English Bill of Rights

England

An Act of Parliament that limited the power of the Crown, protected free speech in Parliament and banned cruel and unusual punishments.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 3 later texts

1740 (Great Qing Code) · Early law

Great Qing Legal Code

China

The last imperial code of China, in force until the reforms of the early twentieth century. It lists thousands of rules on crime, family, property and administration.

Built on 1 earlier text

1776 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Virginia Declaration of Rights

Virginia (United States)

A declaration drafted by George Mason that lists the rights of the people of Virginia: that all power comes from the people, and that they have rights to life, liberty, a fair trial and a free press.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 3 later texts

1776 · Charters, declarations and treaties

United States Declaration of Independence

United States

The statement by which the American colonies declared themselves independent, setting out the idea that people have equal, inalienable rights and that governments rule by consent.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1787 (in force 1789) · Constitutions

Constitution of the United States

United States

The first written national constitution still in force. It sets up a federal government with three branches and divides power between the nation and the states.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 8 later texts

1789 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

France

A revolutionary statement that all people are born free and equal in rights, and that law is the expression of the general will.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 5 later texts

1791 · Charters, declarations and treaties

United States Bill of Rights

United States

The first ten amendments to the US Constitution, protecting freedoms such as speech, religion and fair trial.

Built on 3 earlier texts · Shaped 2 later texts

1794 · Civil codes

Prussian General Land Law (ALR)

Prussia

An extremely detailed code for the Prussian state, covering private law, family law, criminal law and even the rights and duties of the different social classes.

1804 · Civil codes

French Civil Code (Napoleonic Code)

France

One short, clear code covering persons, property and the ways property is acquired, including contracts. It replaced the patchwork of old local customs.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 15 later texts

1808 · Civil codes

Louisiana Digest of the Civil Laws

Louisiana (United States)

A civil code for the territory of Orleans, later Louisiana, drawing on French and Spanish law.

Built on 1 earlier text

1810 · Criminal codes

French Penal Code (Code pénal)

France

Napoleon's criminal code, which divides offences into three classes by seriousness and sets the penalties in advance in the text.

Shaped 2 later texts

1811 · Civil codes

Austrian General Civil Code (ABGB)

Austria

A civil code for the Habsburg lands, built on natural-law ideas and Roman law.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1812 · Constitutions

Constitution of Cádiz

Spain

A liberal constitution drawn up in Cádiz during the war against Napoleon, which set up a constitutional monarchy, a single parliament and rights for citizens.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1814 · Constitutions

Constitution of Norway

Norway

A constitution written at Eidsvoll in a few weeks in 1814, setting up a limited monarchy and a parliament with real power.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1831 · Constitutions

Constitution of Belgium

Belgium

The constitution of the new Belgian state, which set out a constitutional monarchy, a list of rights, and a clear separation between church and state.

Built on 1 earlier text

1838 · Civil codes

Dutch Civil Code of 1838

Netherlands

The first full civil code of the Netherlands, which replaced the French code that had applied in the Napoleonic period.

Built on 1 earlier text

1844 · Civil codes

Serbian Civil Code

Serbia

Serbia's first civil code, adopted in the principality of Serbia.

Built on 1 earlier text

1848 · Constitutions

Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848

Switzerland

The constitution that turned Switzerland from a loose league of cantons into a federal state, with two parliamentary chambers and a federal government.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1855 (in force 1857) · Civil codes

Chilean Civil Code (Andrés Bello)

Chile

A civil code written largely by the jurist Andrés Bello, combining Spanish law, Roman law and the French code.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 1 later text

1860 (in force 1862) · Criminal codes

Indian Penal Code

British India

A complete criminal code for British India, first drafted by Thomas Babington Macaulay and his commission in the 1830s, which defines offences and penalties in one clear text.

Built on 1 earlier text

1860 to 1865 · Civil codes

Teixeira de Freitas's Esboço (draft civil code)

Brazil

A very thorough draft civil code for Brazil by the jurist Augusto Teixeira de Freitas, with a General Part and a clear order of topics. It was never enacted in Brazil.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 2 later texts

1865 · Civil codes

Italian Civil Code of 1865

Italy

The first civil code of the new kingdom of Italy, replacing the codes of the older Italian states.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1867 · Civil codes

Portuguese Civil Code of 1867 (Código de Seabra)

Portugal

The first Portuguese civil code, drafted by Visconde de Seabra, which opened with a section on the rights of persons.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1869 (in force 1871) · Civil codes

Argentine Civil Code (Vélez Sársfield)

Argentina

The civil code of Argentina written by Dalmacio Vélez Sársfield, which stayed in force, with many amendments, until 2015.

Built on 3 earlier texts

1871 · Criminal codes

German Criminal Code (StGB)

German Empire

The criminal code of the newly united German Empire, based on the Prussian code of 1851, with a general part on principles of liability and a special part on offences.

Built on 1 earlier text

1869 to 1876 · Civil codes

Ottoman Mecelle (Majalla)

Ottoman Empire

The first attempt to put Islamic civil and commercial law, in the Hanafi tradition, into the form of a modern code with numbered articles.

Shaped 2 later texts

1889 · Civil codes

Spanish Civil Code

Spain

Spain's national civil code, written to unify private law while keeping some regional civil laws.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1889 · Constitutions

Meiji Constitution

Japan

The constitution of the Empire of Japan, given by the Emperor, with an elected lower house of the Diet but strong powers kept by the Emperor.

1896 (in force 1900) · Civil codes

German Civil Code (BGB)

Germany

A precise, abstract code built on the German scholarship of Roman law. Its famous 'general part' sets out rules that apply across the whole code.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 16 later texts

1896 to 1898 · Civil codes

Japanese Civil Code

Japan

Japan's modern civil code, adopted in the Meiji period to replace unequal treaties and modernise the state.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 3 later texts

1899 (in force 1901) · Criminal codes

Queensland Criminal Code (Griffith Code)

Queensland (Australia)

A criminal code drafted by Sir Samuel Griffith that put the whole of the criminal law of Queensland into one statute.

Shaped 1 later text

1900 (in force 1901) · Constitutions

Commonwealth of Australia Constitution

Australia

The constitution that joined the six Australian colonies into a federation, passed as an Act of the British Parliament.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1907 (in force 1912) · Civil codes

Swiss Civil Code (and Code of Obligations)

Switzerland

A short, clear code in plain language, written by the jurist Eugen Huber, with a separate Code of Obligations.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 5 later texts

1916 · Criminal codes

Nigerian Criminal Code

Nigeria

The criminal code that applies in the southern states of Nigeria, now a federal statute, for offences from homicide to property crime.

Built on 1 earlier text

1916 (in force 1917) · Civil codes

Brazilian Civil Code of 1916

Brazil

Brazil's first national civil code, drafted by Clóvis Beviláqua, in force until the 2002 code replaced it.

Built on 3 earlier texts · Shaped 1 later text

1917 · Constitutions

Constitution of Mexico

Mexico

A constitution written after the Mexican Revolution, with strong provisions on land, labour and education.

Built on 1 earlier text

1919 · Constitutions

Weimar Constitution

Germany

Germany's first democratic constitution, with a long list of social and economic rights.

Shaped 4 later texts

1920 · Constitutions

Austrian Federal Constitution

Austria

A constitution that created one of the first specialised constitutional courts (Czechoslovakia set one up the same year), designed in Austria by the jurist Hans Kelsen.

Shaped 2 later texts

1922 · Civil codes

Soviet Civil Code (RSFSR, 1922)

Soviet Russia

The first Soviet civil code, adopted when the state allowed some private trade (the New Economic Policy). It put the state's economic control above private rights.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1925 to 1935 · Civil codes

Thai Civil and Commercial Code

Thailand

A single code covering civil and commercial law, drafted by Thai and foreign jurists.

Built on 4 earlier texts

1926 · Civil codes

Turkish Civil Code

Turkey

Turkey's civil code, adopted as part of the legal reforms of the new republic.

Built on 1 earlier text

1929 to 1931 · Civil codes

Civil Code of the Republic of China

China (now in force in Taiwan)

A civil code adopted by the Republic of China, drafted with the help of foreign models.

Built on 3 earlier texts

1936 · Constitutions

Soviet Constitution of 1936

Soviet Union

The constitution of the Soviet Union that declared the country a socialist state and listed social and economic rights, such as work and rest, alongside civil ones.

Shaped 1 later text

1937 · Constitutions

Constitution of Ireland

Ireland

The constitution of Ireland, approved by referendum, with a list of fundamental rights, a President and a Supreme Court that can strike down laws.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 1 later text

1940 (in force 1946) · Civil codes

Greek Civil Code

Greece

Greece's civil code, which replaced Byzantine law that had stayed in force until the 20th century.

Built on 1 earlier text

1942 · Civil codes

Italian Civil Code of 1942

Italy

A civil code that merged civil and commercial law into one text, replacing the code of 1865 and the separate commercial code.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 2 later texts

1945 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Charter of the United Nations

International

The founding treaty of the United Nations, which states the purposes of the organisation, bans the use of force and commits states to respect human rights.

Shaped 1 later text

1945 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Nuremberg Charter (London Charter)

International

The charter of the International Military Tribunal that tried leading Nazi officials, which defined crimes against peace, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Shaped 1 later text

1947 · Constitutions

Constitution of Japan

Japan

A post-war constitution that made the Emperor a symbol of the state, guaranteed rights and renounced war in Article 9.

Built on 1 earlier text

1948 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

United Nations

A declaration adopted by the UN General Assembly, setting out the rights that all human beings are said to share.

Built on 3 earlier texts · Shaped 5 later texts

1948 · Constitutions

Constitution of Italy

Italy

A post-war constitution that created a republic, a long list of rights and a Constitutional Court.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 2 later texts

1948 · Civil codes

Egyptian Civil Code (Sanhuri)

Egypt

A civil code drafted by the jurist Abd El-Razzak El-Sanhuri that combined a French-style structure with rules drawn from Islamic law.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 4 later texts

1949 · Constitutions

German Basic Law (Grundgesetz)

Germany

Germany's post-war constitution. It begins with the inviolability of human dignity and set up a powerful Federal Constitutional Court.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 2 later texts

1949 (in force 1950) · Civil codes

Civil Code of the Philippines

Philippines

A civil code that replaced the Spanish code in force since 1889, adding American-influenced rules.

Built on 1 earlier text

1949 · Civil codes

Syrian Civil Code

Syria

The civil code of Syria, written by the same jurist as the Egyptian code of the same year.

Built on 1 earlier text

1950 (in force 1953) · Charters, declarations and treaties

European Convention on Human Rights

Council of Europe

A treaty protecting civil and political rights, enforced by the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 4 later texts

1949 (in force 1950) · Constitutions

Constitution of India

India

One of the world's longest constitutions, with a list of fundamental rights, directive principles and a federal structure.

Built on 4 earlier texts

1951 · Civil codes

Iraqi Civil Code

Iraq

Iraq's civil code, drafted with the help of Sanhuri, who wrote Egypt's code.

Built on 1 earlier text

1954 · Constitutions

Constitution of the People's Republic of China (1954)

China

The first constitution of the People's Republic of China, which set up the National People's Congress as the highest organ of state power.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1957 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Treaty of Rome

Europe

The treaty that set up the European Economic Community, with a common market and its own institutions, including a Court of Justice.

1958 (in force 1960) · Civil codes

Korean Civil Code

South Korea

The civil code of South Korea, which replaced the Japanese code that had applied in the colonial period.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1958 · Constitutions

Constitution of the French Fifth Republic

France

The constitution of France since 1958, which set up a strong president alongside a prime minister and parliament, and a Constitutional Council.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1960 · Civil codes

Ethiopian Civil Code

Ethiopia

A civil code for Ethiopia drafted by the French comparative lawyer René David, in force from 1960.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1966 · Civil codes

Portuguese Civil Code

Portugal

Portugal's modern civil code, replacing the code of 1867.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1966 (in force 1976) · Charters, declarations and treaties

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

International

A treaty that turns the civil and political rights of the Universal Declaration into binding obligations for the states that join it.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 1 later text

1969 (in force 1978) · Charters, declarations and treaties

American Convention on Human Rights

The Americas

The main human-rights treaty of the Americas, which created the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1976 · Civil codes

Jordanian Civil Code

Jordan

Jordan's civil code, which draws heavily on Islamic jurisprudence and on the Egyptian code.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1976 · Constitutions

Constitution of Portugal

Portugal

The constitution adopted after the 1974 revolution, with a long list of civil, political, economic and social rights and a directly elected president.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 1 later text

1978 · Constitutions

Spanish Constitution

Spain

The constitution of Spain's democracy after Franco, with regional autonomy and a Constitutional Court.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 1 later text

1980 (in force 1988) · Uniform laws and model principles

UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG)

International

A treaty that sets one set of rules for sales of goods between businesses in different countries, drafted by lawyers from common-law, civil-law and socialist systems.

Shaped 3 later texts

1981 (in force 1986) · Charters, declarations and treaties

African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights

Africa

The main human-rights treaty of the African Union, which lists individual rights and also the rights of peoples and duties of individuals.

Built on 1 earlier text

1982 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

Canada

A bill of rights built into the Canadian constitution in 1982, with a clause (section 1) that allows reasonable limits on rights.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 2 later texts

1982 · Constitutions

Constitution of the People's Republic of China (1982)

China

The constitution of China now in force, with later amendments, which sets out the state structure and the role of the Communist Party and lists the rights of citizens.

Built on 1 earlier text

1985 · Civil codes

UAE Civil Transactions Law

United Arab Emirates

The federal civil law of the UAE, covering contracts, property and civil liability.

Built on 1 earlier text

1988 · Constitutions

Constitution of Brazil

Brazil

A long constitution adopted after the end of military rule, with a wide list of rights, a federal structure and a Supreme Federal Court.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1990 · Charters, declarations and treaties

New Zealand Bill of Rights Act

New Zealand

An ordinary statute that lists civil and political rights and directs the courts to prefer an interpretation of other laws that is consistent with them.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 1 later text

1991 (in force 1994) · Civil codes

Civil Code of Québec

Quebec (Canada)

A modern civil code for Quebec, the civil-law province of Canada. It replaced the code of 1866.

Built on 1 earlier text

1992 · Civil codes

Dutch New Civil Code

Netherlands

A modern civil code, written over decades, that replaced the code of 1838. It covers property, obligations and contracts in a modern structure.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 2 later texts

1994 to 2006 · Civil codes

Civil Code of the Russian Federation

Russia

A civil code adopted in several parts after the end of the Soviet Union, setting up a market-economy private law.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1994 · Uniform laws and model principles

UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts

International

A set of model rules on contracts, drafted by scholars from many countries, which parties may choose to govern their contract and judges and legislators may use as a guide.

Built on 1 earlier text · Shaped 2 later texts

1996 · Constitutions

Constitution of South Africa

South Africa

A constitution with a strong bill of rights, written after the end of apartheid, with a Constitutional Court.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1997 · Civil codes

Civil Code of Georgia

Georgia

A civil code written after independence from the Soviet Union.

Built on 1 earlier text

1998 (in force 2002) · Charters, declarations and treaties

Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

International

The treaty that created the International Criminal Court, a permanent court for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and aggression.

Built on 1 earlier text

1998 · Charters, declarations and treaties

Human Rights Act 1998 (United Kingdom)

United Kingdom

An Act that makes the rights of the European Convention on Human Rights enforceable in UK courts. Judges must read other laws consistently with those rights where possible, and may declare a law incompatible, but cannot strike it down.

Built on 2 earlier texts

1999 · Civil codes

Contract Law of the People's Republic of China

China

A single uniform contract law for China, which replaced three earlier laws on different kinds of contract.

Built on 2 earlier texts · Shaped 1 later text

2000 (in force 2001) · Civil codes

Civil Code of Lithuania

Lithuania

A new civil code written after Lithuania regained independence.

Built on 1 earlier text

2000 (binding 2009) · Charters, declarations and treaties

Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union

European Union

A single text listing the personal, civil, political, economic and social rights that apply in the European Union, binding on EU institutions and on states when they apply EU law.

Built on 1 earlier text

2002 · Civil codes

Brazilian Civil Code

Brazil

A new civil code that replaced the 1916 code and merged civil and commercial law.

Built on 3 earlier texts

2002 · Civil codes

German reform of the law of obligations (Schuldrechtsmodernisierung)

Germany

A major reform of the German Civil Code that rewrote the rules on breach of contract, limitation periods and sales to consumers.

Built on 2 earlier texts

2016 · Civil codes

French contract-law reform

France

A major reform of the contract and obligations sections of the French Civil Code, renumbering articles and modernising its rules after two centuries.

Built on 2 earlier texts

2020 (in force 2021) · Civil codes

Civil Code of the People's Republic of China

China

China's first Civil Code, which brings together earlier laws on property, contracts, torts, family and inheritance, with a General Part at the front.

Built on 2 earlier texts