Guinea
Civil law
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Guinea is a civil-law country with a legal system from France. Islamic law and custom matter in family life, and business law is shared with other OHADA countries. Its constitutional arrangements have changed through political events.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
Where the law comes from
- The Constitution, the highest law while in force
- Codes and statutes in the French tradition
- OHADA Uniform Acts for business law
- Islamic and customary law, in family and local matters
The main courts
- The Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court
- Courts of appeal
- First-instance courts and justices of the peace
Becoming a lawyer
A law degree and professional training, then registration with the Bar of Guinea.
What may surprise you
- French-style codes coexist with Islamic law, since most of the population is Muslim.
- Constitutional rules have been changed or suspended more than once, so formal structure and practice can differ.
- Business law is made at the OHADA level.
Related systems
How this country is classified
The University of Ottawa’s JuriGlobe database lists Guinea as: Civil law, Customary. 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.
Other countries in the same family
Sources
- OHADA: Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa
- JuriGlobe: world legal systems (University of Ottawa)
Sources last reviewed: October 2026.
TheLawToKnow Tools’s Legal Families Atlas is an educational overview. It simplifies on purpose, and it is not legal advice. For a real legal question about Guinea, consult a lawyer qualified there. Report a mistake.
