Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights

Article 31: Applicable Law

• Paragraph 1
  In carrying out its functions, the Court shall have regard to:
• Point a
  The Constitutive Act;


• Point b
  International treaties, whether general or particular, ratified by the contesting States;


• Point c
  International custom, as evidence of a general practice accepted as law;


• Point d
  The general principles of law recognized universally or by African States;


• Point e
  Subject to the provisions of paragraph 1, of Article 46 of the present Statute, judicial decisions and writings of the most highly qualified publicists of various nations s well as the regulations, directives and decisions of the Union, as subsidiary means for the determination of the rules of law;


• Point f
  Any other law relevant to the determination of the case.
• Paragraph 2
  This Article shall not prejudice the power of the Court to decide a case ex aequo et bono, if the parties agree thereto.