Law of Argentina

The Legal system of Argentina is a civil law legal system. The pillar of the civil system is the Constitution of Argentina (1853).

The Argentine Constitution of 1853 was an attempt to unite the unstable and young country of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata under a single law, creating as well the different organisms needed to run a country. This constitution was finally approved after failed attempts in 1813 (see Assembly of 1813), 1819 and 1831 (Pacto Federal).

Structure of the Law in Argentina

 * Constitution of Argentina
 * Bill of Rights
 * Form of Government
 * Delegation of Powers to the National
 * Precedence of Laws - International Treaties
 * Provincial Constitutions

The first Civil Code was written by Argentine jurist Dalmacio Vélez Sársfield, and came into effect on January 1, 1871 and remained law until 1 August 2015, when it was replaced by a new Civil and Commercial Code - Código Civil y Comercial de la Nación.
 * Civil Code of Argentina

The 1871 Argentine Civil Code was largely inspired by the Spanish legal tradition, and also by the Brazilian Civil Code, the Spanish Civil Code of 1851, the Napoleonic code and the Chilean Civil Code. The sources of this Civil Code also include various theoretical legal works, mainly of the great French jurists of the 19th century. It was the first Civil Law that consciously adopted as its cornerstone the distinction between rights and obligations and real property rights, thus distancing itself from the French model.

The new Código Civil y Comercial de la Nación brings many changes, in particular the modernization of family law.


 * Penal Code of Argentina


 * Argentine sources of law
 * Statutory Law
 * Case Law
 * Custom
 * General Principles of Law
 * Analogy
 * Equity


 * Argentine interpretation of legislation
 * Methods of Interpretation
 * Sources of Interpretation
 * Special Rules of Interpretation


 * Argentine law jurisdictions
 * Jurisdiction
 * Competence
 * Levels of Jurisdiction
 * Jurisdiction of the Argentine Courts in the International Sphere