The Nature of Foreign Law and its Application before Algerian Courts

Resumo

The application of foreign law in cross-border private disputes is a core challenge in private international law for the Algerian judiciary. The purpose of this study is to determine the legal status of foreign law before Algerian courts, and define the procedural rules governing its application, proof, and review by the Supreme Court of Algeria, with a specific focus on the regulatory framework established by Article 358(6) of the Code of Civil and Administrative Procedure. The research uses normative legal analysis of legislative provisions, domestic judicial jurisprudence, and comparative doctrinal assessment of private international law standards. The results confirm that Algeria applies a dual nature regime for foreign law: all foreign law unrelated to family law is classified as a question of fact, the burden of proving its content rests on the party invoking its application, and misapplication of these rules is generally not subject to cassation review, except for cases of errors in the application of domestic choice of law rules or defects in judicial reasoning. Foreign law governing family law matters is treated as equivalent to domestic law, applied ex officio by judges, and its misapplication is a valid ground for cassation. The study concludes that the current dual regime creates practical difficulties for courts, and recommends the adoption of a uniform regulatory framework for all categories of foreign law.