Civil law in Haiti

Haitian civil law uses terms such as état civil for civil-status registration, capacité for legal capacity, obligation for a legally enforceable duty and acte authentique for a document prepared or certified by a notary. The civil-status system records births, marriages and deaths through an Officier de l'état civil; extracts and legalisation may be needed to prove identity, family relationships or inheritance rights. A missing or late record can require an administrative or court procedure whose availability depends on the Commune. Majority generally begins at 18 under the Constitution. The law recognises legal capacity and protection for minors and persons under tutelle or curatelle, with the Tribunal de paix receiving Conseil de famille decisions and oaths from tuteurs or curateurs. Contracts depend on capacity, consent, a clearly documented obligation and evidence of what the parties agreed. Common forms include a private written deed, called an acte sous seing privé, and a notarised authentic deed. Sales of immovable property normally require title and boundary checks, an arpentage by an arpenteur-géomètre, a notarial deed and registration or transcription with the DGI. A non-Haitian acquiring immovable property may need an Autorisation d'Aquisition de Propriété Immobilière through the MJSP; current requirements must be checked before relying on the procedure. Contractual non-performance can lead to performance claims or dommages-intérêts, meaning monetary damages. Property practice is fragmented. Haiti uses a largely paper-based deed-registration system involving the DGI Service de la Conservation Foncière, the Office National du Cadastre, notaries, surveyors and courts. Overlapping or informal titles, incomplete records and weak digital searches increase the risk of land disputes. A World Bank 2020 benchmark listed approximately 7 days for a certificat foncier, 60 days for arpentage authorisation, 26 days for the survey, 18 days for the notarial deed, 1 day for an avis de cotisation and 225 days for DGI registration. These figures are historical benchmarks, not current national promises. Historical references also mention a statutory notary fee of 1%, a typical ASNOP figure of 2%, a 3% registration duty and a 1% transcription fee; current rates must be confirmed. Family law covers civil marriage, divorce, filiation, paternity, maternity, parental authority and support. The Constitution protects families formed with or without marriage and protects children and parents. Plaçage is a locally relevant informal union, but available evidence does not establish that it has the same legal status as marriage; proof and inheritance risks can therefore arise. The 1982 decree removed major forms of discrimination against married women and strengthened their civil capacity. A comprehensive Family Code has constitutional support, but its enactment is not verified in the available research. Inheritance begins with proof of death, family relationships, marriage, ownership and existing debts. The estate can include rights, legal claims and liabilities. Heirs may need an inventory, acceptance or repudiation, and a benefit of inventory can limit exposure to estate liabilities under the applicable procedure. A will is revocable. Partition and transcription may involve a notary, the DGI, the greffe and the Tribunal de première instance. Older gender-based provisions of the Code civil should not be applied without checking the Constitution and later reforms. Civil liability generally requires proof of fault, damage and a causal link. The Haitian Code civil provides a general fault basis in Article 1168 and rules on liability for another person's act or for things under a person's control in Article 1170. A claimant may seek damages or contractual performance through the civil courts. Criminal proceedings are separate and do not replace the civil claim merely because the same event may also constitute an offence. Civil cases may begin through an assignation, citation, requête or référé, depending on the matter. The Tribunal de paix handles local civil and commercial matters, possession and boundary disputes, leases, termination and eviction, certain seizures, conciliation and Conseil de famille acts. Cases may proceed to the Tribunal de première instance, the Cour d'appel and finally the Cour de Cassation, which reviews legal errors rather than retrying the facts. MJSP information has referred to 18 tribunals de première instance in 10 departments, while an older source listed 15 in 9; the competent institution should be confirmed locally. CNAL and BAL provide a legal-aid framework for people with limited means, but its operation is not uniform nationwide. Enforcement requires a titre exécutoire, such as an enforceable judgment or qualifying notarised deed, and a fixed, due claim. The usual process involves service by an huissier, a commandement, seizure of movable or immovable property, sale and distribution of the proceeds. The Constitution gives judgments and enforceable notarial deeds an enforcement mandate, while the Code de procédure civile governs execution. A debtor may raise objections under the applicable procedure. Foreign judgments generally require legalisation and exequatur before enforcement in Haiti. Huissier, court, publication, auction and DGI costs vary, and no reliable current national enforcement period is established. Le Moniteur, current MJSP information, the Cour de Cassation and an official legal text should be checked because some available Code editions and reform materials are historical or annotated.