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.

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Comparison of selected legal systems
Attribute	GrenadaReviewed	PhilippinesReviewed	DR CongoReviewed	SamoaReviewed
Legal family	Common law	Mixed civil and common law	Civil law (Belgian tradition)	Common law with customary law
System of government	Constitutional monarchy	Unitary presidential republic	Unitary semi-presidential republic	Unitary parliamentary republic
Constitution	The Grenada Constitution	Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines	Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo	Constitution of the Independent State of Samoa
In force since	1973	1987	2006	1962
Capital	Saint George's	Manila	Kinshasa	Apia
Official languages	English	Filipino, English	French, Lingala, Swahili, Kikongo, Tshiluba	Samoan, English
Currency	East Caribbean dollar (XCD)	Philippine peso (PHP)	Congolese Franc (CDF)	Samoan tālā (WST)
Population	126,000	114,000,000	102,300,000	220,000
Division of powers	Unitary. The state comprises Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique; Carriacou and Petite Martinique have a Ministry and local administration but no separate legislature.	Unitary but with a constitutionally mandated Local Government Code devolving substantial powers, and one autonomous region: the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, created in 2019 under the Bangsamoro Organic Law with its own parliament and its own Syariah justice system.	Semi-presidential: a directly elected President, a Prime Minister from the parliamentary majority, and a bicameral Parliament. The 2006 constitution split the former Supreme Court into three separate apex courts.	Unitary. Parliament legislates for the whole country. Below it, about 250 villages govern themselves through the village fono (council of matai) under the Village Fono Act 1990, which gives customary village authority statutory recognition — a genuine layer of local government rather than a delegation of central power.
How law is made	Bills pass three readings in both Houses and receive the Governor-General's assent. Constitutional amendments to entrenched provisions need a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives and then approval by a referendum, a double lock that has defeated every reform package put to voters.	A bill passes three readings in each chamber, is reconciled in a bicameral conference committee, and goes to the President, who may veto it in whole or — uniquely for appropriation, revenue and tariff bills — line by line. Congress may override by two-thirds of each house voting separately. The Constitution also reserves a people's initiative for amendments, though the enabling machinery has repeatedly been held inadequate.	Bills pass both chambers; persistent disagreement is resolved by a joint commission or a final National Assembly vote. The President promulgates within the constitutional period, and the Constitutional Court may be seised beforehand.	Bills are read three times in the Legislative Assembly, usually with parliamentary committee scrutiny, and are then assented to by the O le Ao o le Malo. Ordinary bills need a simple majority. Constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority of all members at the third reading, and any amendment affecting customary land or matai titles is politically entrenched by the strength of the fa'a Samoa consensus even where the two-thirds threshold is met.
Legal profession	A fused profession of legal practitioners admitted by the High Court under the Legal Profession Act, after a law degree and the Legal Education Certificate. The Grenada Bar Association represents practitioners.	A single fused profession of attorneys admitted to the Philippine Bar by the Supreme Court itself, which controls admission, discipline and the rules of practice — a power the Constitution assigns to the Court rather than to the executive or a bar council. Candidates complete a four-year law degree and sit the Bar Examinations, historically among the hardest in Asia with pass rates often under 25 per cent. All lawyers belong to the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, and the Court has imposed mandatory continuing legal education since 2000.	Avocats admitted to provincial bars under the national Ordre des avocats after a law degree and traineeship; défenseurs judiciaires assist in lower courts.	A fused profession under the Lawyers and Legal Practice Act 2014: lawyers are admitted by the Supreme Court and must hold a practising certificate from the Samoa Law Society. Most qualify at the University of the South Pacific or in New Zealand. Practice before the Land and Titles Court is different in character from ordinary litigation, because the issues are matai genealogy and customary entitlement rather than statutory or common-law rights.

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.