The History of the Codification of Civil Law in Montenegro
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47078/2025.2.333-365Keywords:
custom, customary law, General Property Code for the Principality of Montenegro – OIZ, Prince Nikola, Valtazar Bogišić, special laws, Civil Code of MontenegroAbstract
The study analyzes five periods in the history of the codification of civil law in Montenegro, from the 19th century to the present. Until the second half of the 19th century, custom was the main ‘regulator’ of legal life. The rules created by long-standing customary practice in Montenegro were perceived in the people's awareness as legally binding. For centuries, the people of Montenegro were suspicious of novelties that seemed opposed to their ingrained forms and convictions.
The first laws that regulated certain (limited) property-related legal relations were the Code of Petar I Petrović Njegoš of 1798 (1803) and Danilo's Code of 1855. The first civil code that codified the existing customary law in Montenegro and incorporated the achievements of contemporary jurisprudence belonging to the common law of modern nations was the General Property Code for the Principality of Montenegro of 1888, written by the renowned jurist Valtazar Bogišić. By its overall qualities, this Code represents the most accomplished legislative act among the countries of the former Yugoslavia. It remained in effect until 1946, when socialist legal relations and dominant social property were established in the former Yugoslavia.
From 1946 to the present, civil legal relations in Montenegro have been regulated by a number of laws. A deeper, substantial intervention in Montenegro's civil law will be achieved with the adoption of an integrated civil code, the drafting of which is near completion. The Code will consist of seven parts: the general part, the law of persons, family law, property law, obligation law, inheritance law, and the 45 famous legal maxims taken from the concluding part of the General Property Code for the Principality of Montenegro.
The unified civil code of Montenegro will maintain continuity with previous legislation, incorporate modern principles of civil law, and take into consideration the relevant positions of court practice in Montenegro and the European Union.
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