Comparison
Read two legal systems against each other
Because every portal follows the same fifteen-section outline, the comparison is genuinely like-for-like rather than a collage of whatever each government happens to publish.
Select up to six documented jurisdictions
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| Attribute | GhanaReviewed | EthiopiaReviewed |
|---|---|---|
| Legal family | Mixed (common law and customary law) | Civil law with customary and religious personal status |
| System of government | Unitary presidential republic | Federal parliamentary republic |
| Constitution | Constitution of the Republic of Ghana | Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia |
| In force since | 1992 | 1995 |
| Capital | Accra | Addis Ababa |
| Official languages | English, Akan, Ewe, Dagbani | Amharic, Afaan Oromo, Somali, Tigrinya, Afar |
| Currency | Ghanaian Cedi (GHS) | Ethiopian birr (ETB) |
| Population | 34,100,000 | 126,500,000 |
| Division of powers | Executive president with a Cabinet drawn substantially from Parliament, a unicameral legislature, and a judiciary whose independence is protected by security of tenure and a charged-on-consolidated-fund salary. | Federal, with regional states and two chartered cities, Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa. Regions have their own constitutions, legislatures, executives and court systems, and residual power lies with them rather than the federation. Regional courts exercise delegated federal jurisdiction in areas where federal first-instance courts have not been established, so the two systems interlock in practice. |
| How law is made | A bill is gazetted, read three times, considered by committee and passed by simple majority. Bills with financial implications need presidential consent to be introduced. The President assents; refusal returns the bill with reasons. | Bills are introduced by the Council of Ministers or by members of the House of Peoples' Representatives, examined in standing committee, and passed by simple majority. The House of Federation does not participate in ordinary legislation — its functions are constitutional interpretation, approving state-of-emergency declarations affecting rights, and deciding questions about nations and nationalities. Proclamations take effect on publication in the Federal Negarit Gazeta, which is the authoritative text. |
| Legal profession | Fused: an LLB, the Ghana School of Law professional course and enrolment admit a lawyer who may both solicit and advocate. | Advocates are licensed federally by the Federal Attorney General's office or regionally by justice bureaux, with the licence determining which courts they may appear before — a federal licence is required for the federal courts. The Ethiopian Federal Advocates Association represents the profession. Judges are appointed on the nomination of the Judicial Administration Council and approved by parliament; law graduates from the university faculties supply both bench and bar. |
A comparison table flattens nuance by design. Where a difference matters to a decision you are making, open both portals and read the section in full — the constitutional detail behind a one-line summary is often the part that governs the outcome.