Togo
Civil law
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Togo is a civil-law country with a legal system inherited from France. It has a Supreme Court and a Constitutional Court, customary law matters in family and land matters, and business law is shared with other OHADA countries.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
Where the law comes from
- The Constitution, the highest law
- Codes and statutes in the French tradition, including the Code of Persons and the Family
- OHADA Uniform Acts for business law
- Customary law, in family and land matters
The main courts
- The Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court
- Courts of appeal
- Courts of first instance (tribunaux de première instance)
Becoming a lawyer
A law degree and professional training, then registration with the Bar of Togo.
What may surprise you
- Togo was a German and then a French (and British) colony, but its law today is French.
- Business law comes from OHADA Uniform Acts.
- Customary rules, especially on land, remain strong in practice.
Related systems
How this country is classified
The University of Ottawa’s JuriGlobe database lists Togo 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
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 Togo, consult a lawyer qualified there. Report a mistake.
