ABSTRACT

This thesis dwells on the issues and prospects of conflict of laws on  succession in Cameroon. In order to present this issue, this work examines the various sources of succession law in Cameroon to wit: English Law on Succession and French Law of succession. These laws become applicable in Cameroon as a result of colonialism. While French Cameroon received French law, English Cameroon received English law. Customary law which is also a source of succession law in Cameroon is out of the scope of this work. The rules regulating succession in the two systems are different. For instance with respect to the distribution of estates under English law, priority is given to the surviving spouse vis-à-vis the relatives. On the contrary, under French law of succession, priority is given to the relatives first before the surviving spouse. It is said that, French law adopts the customary system of distribution of estates. This is the crux of the problem of succession law in Cameroon. How can this be reconciled in practice is the point of focus of this work. A significant prospect to this problem is the adopted Family Code on succession. This code is a combination of both English and French law on succession. This code has been drafted for years now but has not been promulgated. Its promulgation will completely but an end to the problem of conflict of laws on succession in Cameroon. The laws on succession in Cameroon constitute the legal framework on succession in Cameroon, but the actual application of this framework is in the courts. The Judicial Ordinance on Judicial Organisation in Cameroon of 2006 amended in 2010 defines the various courts that deal with succession disputes in Cameroon. The courts docket for the past years illustrates their effective role in resolving succession disputes in Cameroon. A popular case on succession that has passed through all the various courts in Cameroon is the case of Zamcho Florence v. Chibikom Peter Fru. The case was tried firstly by the high court of Bamenda which is a court of original jurisdiction and secondly by the court of appeal Bamenda and the Supreme Court in Yaounde which are appellate jurisdiction courts.

FURTHER READINGS: LAW PROJECT TOPICS WITH MATERIALS