French Polynesia

• The Organic Law on the autonomy of French Polynesia, which sets out local powers
• Laws of the country, passed by the Assembly of French Polynesia in its own fields
• French law, including the Civil Code, in matters not given to the territory

• The Court of Cassation in Paris, the final court for ordinary cases
• The Court of Appeal of Papeete
• The Court of First Instance of Papeete, with branches in other islands, and an administrative court

A French law degree and the French bar course, with admission to the Bar of Papeete.

• Local laws of the country are reviewed by the Council of State, not by the ordinary courts.
• Land law has special features that draw on Polynesian family ownership.
• French and Tahitian are both used, but the law is written in French.

France, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna

The University of Ottawa’s JuriGlobe database lists French Polynesia as: Civil law. It names the systems in order of importance.

The map colours a country by the first-named system, and shows both civil-law and common-law countries as “mixed”. It is a simplification, and real systems are rarely pure.

Albania, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria.

• JuriGlobe: world legal systems (University of Ottawa)

Sources last reviewed: October 2026.