Civil law in São Tomé and Príncipe

São Tomé and Príncipe uses a fragmented civil-law framework. The post-1975 legal corpus remains applicable where it does not conflict with the Constitution, and reforms from 2012 to 2018 regulate areas such as civil registration, family law, notarial acts, property registration and court costs. The Código Civil and Código de Processo Civil remain working legal bases, although the current DGRN catalogue does not show a newer general Civil Code or Civil Procedure Code. Civil status, nationality, identification and many registration matters fall within the national jurisdiction of the DGRN and its Conservatórias. The Conservatória do Registo Civil de São Tomé, the Delegação Príncipe and district posts handle birth, death, marriage and related certificates, but service coverage is uneven. Five maternity registration points, including Hospital Quaresma Dias da Graça and a point on Príncipe, support birth registration. The Supremo Tribunal de Justiça is the highest ordinary court, while the Tribunal Constitucional has separate constitutional jurisdiction. The Ministério Público handles civil and commercial work and represents minors through its family and minors service. Contracts are formed, interpreted and enforced under the Código Civil. The rules cover obligations, leases, guarantees and consequences of breach. The Código do Notariado, established by Lei 14/2018, gives certain extrajudicial acts a formal structure and public evidentiary force. A public deed is generally required to create, transfer, modify, divide or extinguish real rights in land or buildings. A notary checks identity, authority, document regularity and legality and may submit the registration request. The Registo Predial gives public information about the legal status of land and buildings. It can record acquisitions, transfers, usufruct, mortgages, leases longer than six years except rural leases, concessions, inheritance, partition, seizure, arrest and other protective measures. Applications may be made personally or through electronic, postal or fax channels where available. The registry reviews the property identity, the parties' authority, the form of the title and the validity of the act. Public certificates are available. Indicative DGRN fees include 75 Dbs for a normal civil certificate and 97.50 Dbs for an urgent certificate; a normal marriage registration is shown at 2,000 Dbs and an urgent one at 2,600 Dbs. Tariffs should be checked when filing. An indicative fee for an indeterminate new-value property act is listed as 400 Dbs/20 T. Family law is mainly governed by Lei 19/2018, the Código de Família. Civil marriage takes place before the civil registrar after preliminary publications, and the authorization is valid for a maximum of 90 days. Mutual-consent divorce can proceed at the Conservatória when there are no minor children or parental responsibility has already been regulated by a court; other divorces proceed before the Tribunal. Conciliation is mandatory, and separation can convert into divorce after two years. A união de facto requires stable, exclusive and serious cohabitation for at least two years without a marriage impediment. Recognition normally uses a declaration under honour, two witnesses and full birth certificates, with a registrar's decision due within a maximum of 45 days. The default matrimonial property regime is community of acquired property. Recognized união de facto can affect protection of the family home, social protection after death and joint income declarations. On separation or death, claims may concern maintenance, the other partner's share of property or residence, with a maximum residence period of three years in the circumstances provided by law. Parentage, parental responsibility, guardianship and restrictions on parental authority involve civil registration or court supervision. Adoption requires a final court judgment, an assessment of the child's best interests and the applicable consents, including consent from an adopted child aged 12 or older. Maintenance is normally paid monthly, may be ordered provisionally and cannot be waived or seized; the statutory order of responsible relatives runs from spouse or former spouse through partner or former partner, descendants, ascendants, siblings, certain uncles and stepparents for minor stepchildren. Inheritance generally relies on the Código Civil, while the Código de Família affects matrimonial property. A notarial habilitação de herdeiros may be available where a mandatory inventory is not required, including cases involving minors when no assets are located in São Tomé and Príncipe. The process normally requires a signed request, a public deed identifying the heirs and an inheritance-tax certificate. Property registration for an undivided hereditary estate requires proof of heirship and identification of the estate property. Inventory and partition may be judicial or extrajudicial where the law permits. Civil liability covers contractual and non-contractual damage, guarantees and prescription. A claim or defence normally requires evidence and follows the Código de Processo Civil. The procedure rules prohibit private self-help and provide ordinary civil actions, family and status proceedings, evidence procedures, protective measures, appeals and enforcement. Enforcement can involve penhora, arresto, arrematação and forced sale. A provisional seizure recorded in the Registo Predial becomes definitive after proof of the enforcement step, and a penhora may be converted into a mortgage through communication by the enforcement agent. Access to legal information, consultation and judicial aid is governed by Lei 9/2012. Natural persons who prove insufficient financial means based on income, assets and household expenses may qualify, including habitual resident foreigners and stateless persons; non-resident foreigners may qualify where reciprocal treatment exists. The Gabinete Informação e Consulta Jurídica works with the Ministério da Justiça and the Ordem dos Advogados, and the Ministério Público may provide services while the system is being established. Depending on the case, representation may involve the Ministério Público, a lawyer, a solicitor or an appointed patron, and the State may cover approved forensic costs. Court costs under DL 11/2017 apply to actions, executions, incidents, protective procedures and appeals. They normally depend on claim value and may be paid in two instalments; exemptions include certain minors, incapable or absent persons represented by the Ministério Público or an appointed defender. Unpaid judicial costs may be enforced by the Ministério Público when sufficient attachable assets are known, while an enforcement with no identifiable assets can be archived and resumed when assets are found.