Legal System of Bulgaria

Bulgaria is located in Europe. It is geographically situated in southeastern europe, bordering the black sea, between romania and turkey. The country achieved independence on 3 march 1878 (as an autonomous principality within the ottoman empire); 22 september 1908 (complete independence from the ottoman empire). The capital is Sofia.

Government Overview

Government Type: parliamentary republic Chief of State: President Rumen RADEV (since 22 January 2017) Head of Government: Prime Minister Rosen ZHELYAZKOV (since 16 January 2025) Cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister, elected by the National Assembly Administrative Divisions: 28 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast); Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Dobrich, Gabrovo, Haskovo, Kardzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv, Razgrad, Ruse, Shumen, Silistra, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofia, Sofia-Grad (Sofia City), Stara Zagora, Targovishte, Varna, Veliko Tarnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Yambol National Holiday: Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal System

The legal system of Bulgaria is described as civil law International Law: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Constitutional Framework

The constitution has the following history: several previous; latest drafted between late 1990 and early 1991, adopted 13 July 1991 Amendment Process: proposed by the National Assembly or by the president of the republic; passage requires three-fourths majority vote of National Assembly members in three ballots; signed by the National Assembly chairperson; note - under special circumstances, a “Grand National Assembly” is elected with the authority to write a new constitution and amend certain articles of the constitution, including those affecting basic civil rights and national sovereignty; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote in each of several readings

Judicial Branch

Highest Court(s): Supreme Court of Cassation consists of a chairman and approximately 72 judges organized into penal, civil, and commercial colleges; Supreme Administrative Court is organized into 2 colleges with various panels of 5 judges each; Constitutional Court consists of 12 justices) and resides outside the judiciary Judge Selection: Supreme Court of Cassation and Supreme Administrative judges elected by the Supreme Judicial Council or SJC (consists of 25 members with extensive legal experience) and appointed by the president; judges can serve until mandatory retirement at age 65; Constitutional Court justices elected by the National Assembly and appointed by the president and the SJC; justices appointed for 9-year terms with renewal of 4 justices every 3 years Subordinate Courts: appeals courts; regional and district courts; administrative courts; courts martial

Legislative Branch

The legislative structure consists of unicameral

Citizenship and Suffrage

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

Historical Background

The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries, Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century, the Ottoman Turks overran the country. Northern Bulgaria attained autonomy in 1878, and all of Bulgaria became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908.

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