ABSTRACT
Nepal’s hybrid legal system draws on Hindu legal traditions but is overlaid with legal influences from a range of sources-primarily British, French, and Indian-thus also combining elements of civil and common law traditions (Urscheler, 2012). Although Nepal was never colonized by a Western imperial power, British common law traditions were introduced into Nepali law principally through the influence of Indian legal education and practice. The French Napoleonic Code was implemented in major reforms introduced in the mid-nineteenth century. At the same time, in a highly linguistically and ethnically diverse society (with over 90 language groups), there remains a patchwork of traditional norms and laws through which different groups of people seek to settle disputes.
