Law of Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan law is a mixed system blending Roman Dutch law, English law, Kandyan law, Thesavalamai and Muslim law, a plurality traced to the island's diverse history. Commercial law is predominantly governed by common law of Roman Dutch origin, while criminal law follows English common law foundations, and personal law matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance are instead governed by Kandyan law, Thesavalamai or Muslim law depending on a person community and location. The Constitution of Sri Lanka is the supreme law, and the judiciary is organized as a hierarchy running from the Supreme Court through the Court of Appeal, the High Court, District Courts, Magistrates Courts and Primary Courts, with the Supreme Court holding final authority in both criminal and civil matters. Since a 1973 reform, legal practitioners have been unified under the single title of Attorney at Law, and the resulting pluralistic system is unusual among Commonwealth countries for the degree to which it accommodates indigenous legal traditions alongside its colonial era common law inheritance.