personal law

The law that governs a person’s family matters, usu. regardless of where the person goes. • In common-law systems, personal law refers to the law of the person’s domicile. In civil-law systems, it refers to the law of the individual’s nationality (and so is sometimes called lex patriae). Cf. TERRITORIAL LAW.

personal law. The law that governs a person’s family matters, usu. regardless of where the person goes. • In common-law systems, personal law refers to the law of the person’s domicile. In civil-law systems, it refers to the law of the individual’s nationality (and so is sometimes called lex patriae). Cf. TERRITORIAL LAW. “The idea