Tanzania

• The Constitution of the United Republic, the highest law
• Acts of Parliament, and laws made separately for Zanzibar in matters that are not union matters
• English common law and equity, received by statute and applied by the courts
• Customary law and Islamic law, in matters of personal status where they apply

• The Court of Appeal of Tanzania at the top
• The High Court, which also has specialised divisions
• Resident magistrates' and district courts, and primary courts, and Kadhi courts in Zanzibar

A law degree, then the Law School of Tanzania's practical course, and admission as an advocate.

• Zanzibar keeps its own courts for some matters inside the union.
• Primary courts apply customary and Islamic law to ordinary people's disputes.
• English-style precedent is followed, but local conditions shape its application.
• Kiswahili is widely used in lower courts, while higher-court law is written in English.

Kenya, Uganda, United Kingdom, India, South Africa

The University of Ottawa’s JuriGlobe database lists Tanzania as: Common law, Customary. It names the systems in order of importance.

The map colours a country by the first-named system, and shows both civil-law and common-law countries as “mixed”. It is a simplification, and real systems are rarely pure.

Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Cook Islands, Dominica, Fiji, Ghana, Grenada, India, Ireland, Jamaica.

• Judiciary of Tanzania

Sources last reviewed: October 2026.