Civil law in Chad

Chadian civil law is based mainly on the French Civil Code tradition as applied through the 1958 Civil Code framework, national legislation and special laws. French and Arabic are the official languages. Customary and religious practices can influence family, matrimonial and inheritance matters, but recognized customs cannot override public order or equality rules. A customary matrimonial regime or succession arrangement generally depends on the parties' agreement; otherwise national law applies. Civil status, called Etat civil, provides the main proof of a person's identity, birth, death and family relationship. Birth and death reports are generally required within one month. The declaration may be made by the father, mother, an ascendant or another person who was present. Registration and the original civil-status act are formally free, while copies and extracts may require a stamp. A late birth registration normally requires a judgment from the Tribunal de première instance. Civil-status services operate through Centres d'etat civil, communes, rural councils and diplomatic or consular offices. The Registre National Biometrique des Populations, established by the 2020 ordinance and administered through ANATS, supports national population registration, although practical coverage is uneven. Correct civil-status records support identity documents, proof of parentage and inheritance claims. Births and deaths of foreign nationals occurring in Chad are recorded under Chadian civil-status rules, while records made abroad follow the law of the place where they were made. Private contracts are generally governed by the Civil Code. Commercial contracts and related matters may fall under OHADA, the Organisation for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa. OHADA acts regulate areas such as commercial transactions, sales, transport, companies, security interests, insolvency, debt recovery, arbitration and mediation. They become directly binding after the applicable adoption and publication periods and prevail over conflicting national rules in their field. A written agreement is strongly advisable because it records the parties, obligations, payment, duration, evidence and remedies. Disputes may go to a civil or commercial court, while mediation or a customary or religious agreement may offer a non-formal solution with different effects and enforceability. Private property receives constitutional protection. Expropriation for public use requires fair and prior compensation. Land transactions require particular care because formal urban registration and rural customary administration operate together. Relevant evidence can include a land title, registration documents, development evidence or a customary certificate of sale. The Direction Domaine et Enregistrement, the Ministry of Finance, the Guichet Unique Affaires Foncieres, the cadastre and local or traditional leaders may have different roles. A buyer should check boundaries, ownership history, registration, competing claims and the seller's authority. Missing deeds, duplicate titles, fraud and weak enforcement create significant risks. Formal registration has been possible since 2013, but the documented process can involve about 30 steps, take more than five years and historically cost several hundred thousand XAF; current official fees and time limits require confirmation. Marriage, divorce and parental responsibilities combine civil-status rules, the Civil Code and special legislation with customary or religious practice. Loi 029/PR/2015 sets the marriage age at 18 for all persons. A civil marriage is celebrated before an Officier d'etat civil. Customary or religious unions may be recorded or transcribed where the applicable procedure allows it. Consent, monogamy or polygamy rules and the legal effects of the union should be checked before marriage because status and applicable law can affect the result. Divorce may proceed under the Civil Code framework through fault or mutual consent procedures. Parents have rights and duties to raise and educate their children, and separation does not remove those duties. Civil-status registration and access to family courts remain less reliable in some rural areas, while early or forced marriage continues in practice despite legal prohibition. Inheritance begins when a person dies and requires proof of death, family relationships and the relevant matrimonial or succession regime. A family council or traditional or religious authority may help resolve an estate informally, while the Tribunal civil provides the formal path. Customary or Islamic practice may apply when the parties accept it, but conflicting rules and exclusions affecting women or children can lead to disputes under national law and equality protections. Civil-status and parentage records are therefore central to widow and child claims. If mediation fails, the matter can proceed to the Tribunal civil and then to the Cour d'appel. Civil liability covers contractual and non-contractual harm. A claimant generally needs evidence of the wrongful act or breach, the damage and the causal connection between them. Compensation claims may concern traffic incidents, property damage, defective performance or other private harm and are usually brought before a civil or commercial court. OHADA rules may apply to commercial or contractual matters. Customary compensation may coexist with a private settlement, but it cannot prevent public authorities from pursuing a criminal matter when criminal law is engaged. Court fees, expert costs and bailiff fees depend on the case, and no uniform national cost or duration has been verified. Chad has one formal judicial order with the Cour suprême, Cours d'appel, Tribunaux and Justices de paix. The Code of Judicial Organisation is based on Loi 11/PR/2013. The Code of Civil, Commercial and Social Procedure, Loi 028/PR/2020, was promulgated on 31 December 2020 and entered into force on 1 March 2021. A civil case normally begins through the greffe with an assignation or requete, proceeds before the court of first instance and may be appealed. A judge may encourage conciliation, and mediation or conciliation can be used where appropriate. Customary authorities provide non-judicial settlement rather than a substitute court judgment. Legal aid is governed by Law 021/PR/2019 through the Commission Nationale de l'Aide Juridique et de l'Assistance Judiciaire under the Ministry of Justice. Automatic assistance categories include minors, refugees, internally displaced persons, returnees and stateless persons. Filing reform is described as removing an advance provision, but stamp, lawyer, huissier and expert costs may still arise. A reported 2025 amendment to Articles 487 and 508 requires confirmation against the currently promulgated consolidated text before reliance. Enforcement may follow a court judgment, an enforceable agreement or an OHADA recovery procedure. The revised Uniform Act on Simplified Recovery and Enforcement Procedures, known as AUVE, was published on 15 November 2023 and entered into force on 16 February 2024 for new procedures; older proceedings may remain governed by the 1998 act. The rules cover injunctions to pay, conservatory measures, seizures, forced execution and sale. A Huissier-commissaire de justice serves documents and carries out many enforcement steps under Law 002/PCMT/2022, with courts and registries supporting the process. A typical sequence is an enforceable title, formal service, voluntary compliance or simplified recovery, followed by seizure or another enforcement measure and possible court challenge. Judgments of the Common Court of Justice and Arbitration, called CCJA, have authority and can be enforced in OHADA member states like national judgments. Actual enforcement depends on the asset, location, jurisdiction and institutional reach, especially outside major urban areas.