The rise and fall of Egypt’s Code de Commerce: a critical examination of the purpose and content of Egypt’s commercial code after the establishment of the economic courts

Abstract

The Egyptian Commercial Code (Code de Commerce) has historically been identified by the following three general characteristics: that it is part of private law; that it was an exceptional system which derived from the Droit Civil proper that governs ‘commercial’ activities; and that its scope of application is not always clear nor easily defined. The recent arrival of Law No. 120 of 2008, which established a new entity known as the ‘economic courts’, is beginning to threaten the very existence of the Code de Commerce and is changing our perspective of these three notions. This article attempts to illustrate how the economic courts system puts the final nail in the coffin of the commercial code and attempts to critically examine the benefits and disbenefits which these changes bring to the Egyptian legal system.