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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
AttributeMaliIndexedGrenadaReviewedIranReviewed
Legal familyCivil law (French tradition)Common lawIslamic law with civil law codification
System of governmentRepublic under transitional military-led governmentConstitutional monarchyIslamic republic
ConstitutionConstitution of MaliThe Grenada ConstitutionConstitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran
In force since202319731979
CapitalBamakoSaint George'sTehran
Official languagesFrench, BambaraEnglishPersian
CurrencyWest African CFA franc (XOF)East Caribbean dollar (XCD)Rial (IRR)
Population23,300,000126,00089,000,000
Division of powersFormally a presidential system with a Prime Minister and bicameral legislature under the 2023 text; in practice transitional authorities exercise combined executive and legislative functions pending elections.Unitary. The state comprises Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique; Carriacou and Petite Martinique have a Ministry and local administration but no separate legislature.Unitary, with 31 provinces headed by governors-general appointed by the Interior Ministry, alongside elected city and village councils created by the Constitution and operating since 1999 with limited competences.
How law is madeUnder the transition, texts are adopted by the Conseil national de transition or issued as ordinances and promulgated by the President of the Transition. The 2023 constitution provides for ordinary bicameral passage once institutions are restored.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 is introduced by the Government or by at least fifteen deputies, passes the Majlis, and goes to the Guardian Council, which has ten days, extendable, to find it consistent with Islam and the Constitution. If the Council objects, the bill returns for amendment; persistent disagreement goes to the Expediency Discernment Council, whose decision is final. Only then does the President sign and publish.
Legal professionAvocats admitted through the Barreau du Mali after a law degree and traineeship; notaires and huissiers are separate ministerial offices.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.Two parallel routes to practice, which is unusual and consequential: attorneys licensed by the Iranian Bar Association (Kanoon-e Vokala), a self-governing body dating to 1953, and attorneys licensed under Article 187 of the Third Development Plan directly by the judiciary. The two groups have contested each other's standing for two decades. Notaries operate licensed offices under the registration organisation, and their authentication is required for property transfers, marriage contracts and powers of attorney.

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.