Sources of Legal Information in Finland

Extract

An essential factor of Finnish legal history and the Finnish legal system is Finland's organic union with Sweden, which lasted for more than 700 years. The result was that the educated class became predominantly Swedish-speaking; Swedish was also the language of the administration and the courts and of higher education. Many of the similarities currently prevailing between Finland and Sweden in cultural life, as well as in their political and legal system, are explained by the two countries having this joint history.