Palau

• The Constitution of 1981, the highest law
• Laws made by the national congress, and American common-law principles
• Traditional law, which the Constitution recognises and protects
• Decisions of the Supreme Court

• The Supreme Court, with an Appellate Division and a Trial Division
• The Court of Common Pleas
• The Land Court, for disputes about land

A law degree, usually from the United States, and admission to the Palau bar.

• It is bound to the United States by a Compact of Free Association, but has its own legal system.
• The Constitution recognises traditional chiefs and customary law.
• Land cases have their own specialised court.

Marshall Islands, Micronesia, United States, Philippines, Fiji

The University of Ottawa’s JuriGlobe database lists Palau as: Common 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.

Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Cook Islands, Dominica, Fiji, Ghana, Grenada, India, Ireland, Jamaica.

• PacLII: Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute
• JuriGlobe: world legal systems (University of Ottawa)
• Constitute Project: constitution of Palau

Sources last reviewed: October 2026.