Uruguay

• The Constitution of 1967, the highest law
• The Civil Code (1868), the Penal Code and other codes and statutes
• Decisions of the Supreme Court
• International treaties, especially on human rights

• The Supreme Court at the top
• Courts of appeal
• First-instance courts, justices of the peace and specialised courts

A law degree from a recognised university, then registration with the Supreme Court as an abogado.

• Only the Supreme Court can declare a law unconstitutional, and its ruling applies only to the case in which the question is raised.
• The Civil Code of 1868 is still in force, in an updated form.
• Uruguay's courts follow civil-law methods but have borrowed from several Latin American neighbours.

Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Spain, Colombia

The University of Ottawa’s JuriGlobe database lists Uruguay 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.

• Judiciary of Uruguay (Poder Judicial)

Sources last reviewed: October 2026.