Legal System of Armenia

Armenia is located in Central Asia. It is geographically situated in southwestern asia, between turkey (to the west) and azerbaijan; note - armenia views itself as part of europe; geopolitically, it can be classified as falling within europe, the middle east, or both. The country achieved independence on 21 september 1991 (from the soviet union); notable earlier dates: 321 b.c. (kingdom of armenia established under the orontid dynasty), a.d. 884 (armenian kingdom reestablished under the bagratid dynasty); 1198 (cilician kingdom established); 28 may 1918 (democratic republic of armenia declared). The capital is Yerevan.

Government Overview

Government Type: parliamentary democracy; note - constitutional changes adopted in December 2015 transformed the government to a parliamentary system Chief of State: President Vahagn KHACHATURYAN (since 13 March 2022) Head of Government: Prime Minister Nikol PASHINYAN (since 10 September 2021) Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister Administrative Divisions: 11 provinces (marzer, singular - marz); Aragatsotn, Ararat, Armavir, Geghark’unik’, Kotayk’, Lorri, Shirak, Syunik’, Tavush, Vayots’ Dzor, Yerevan National Holiday: Independence Day, 21 September (1991) Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal System

The legal system of Armenia is described as civil law system International Law: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Constitutional Framework

The constitution has the following history: previous 1915, 1978; latest adopted 5 July 1995 Amendment Process: proposed by the president of the republic or by the National Assembly; passage requires approval by the president, the National Assembly, and a referendum with at least 25% registered-voter participation and more than 50% of votes; constitutional articles on the form of government and democratic procedures are not amendable

Judicial Branch

Highest Court(s): Court of Cassation or Appeals Court (consists of the Criminal Chamber with a chairman and 5 judges and the Civil and Administrative Chamber with a chairman and 10 judges – with both civil and administrative specializations); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 judges) Judge Selection: Court of Cassation judges nominated by the Supreme Judicial Council, a 10-member body of selected judges and legal scholars; judges appointed by the president; judges can serve until age 65; Constitutional Court judges - 4 appointed by the president, and 5 elected by the National Assembly; judges can serve until age 70 Subordinate Courts: criminal and civil appellate courts; administrative appellate court; first instance courts; specialized administrative and bankruptcy courts

Legislative Branch

The legislative structure consists of unicameral Note: note 1: additional seats allocated as necessary; the numbers usually change with each parliamentary convocation

note 2: four mandates are reserved for national minorities; no more than 70% of the top membership of a party list can belong to the same sex; political parties must meet a 5% threshold and alliances a 7% threshold to win seats; at least three parties must be seated in the Parliament

Citizenship and Suffrage

Citizenship by Birth: no Citizenship by Descent: at least one parent must be a citizen of Armenia Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Historical Background

Armenia prides itself on being the first state to formally adopt Christianity (early 4th century). Armenia has existed as a political entity for centuries, but for much of its history it was under the sway of various empires, including the Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Persian, Ottoman, and Russian.

This article provides a summary of the legal system and governmental structure of Armenia based on the CIA World Factbook. The Factbook is a public domain publication of the United States Central Intelligence Agency.