Law of the Czech Republic

Czech law belongs to the Germanic branch of the continental civil law tradition, built on written statutes rather than judicial precedent. Its modern shape dates from the 1993 Constitution of the Czech Republic, adopted after the 1989 Velvet Revolution, and from the country decision to join the European Union in 2004, which gives European Union law supremacy in the areas it covers. Sources of law rank the Constitution and constitutional acts first, then ratified international treaties, parliamentary statutes and Constitutional Court decisions, and finally delegated legislation such as government orders and ministry regulations. The system has been substantially recodified in recent years, with a new Criminal Code taking effect in 2010 and a new Civil Code in 2014, and laws are published officially in the Sbirka zakonu, the Collection of Law.