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Comparison

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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
AttributeMexicoReviewedMadagascarReviewedGrenadaReviewed
Legal familyCivil lawFrench civil law with customary lawCommon law
System of governmentFederal presidential republicSemi-presidential republicConstitutional monarchy
ConstitutionPolitical Constitution of the United Mexican StatesConstitution of the Fourth RepublicThe Grenada Constitution
In force since191720101973
CapitalMexico CityAntananarivoSaint George's
Official languagesSpanish, Nahuatl, Yucatec MayaMalagasy, FrenchEnglish
CurrencyMexican peso (MXN)Malagasy ariary (MGA)East Caribbean dollar (XCD)
Population130,000,00030,300,000126,000
Division of powersFederal. Powers not expressly granted to the union are reserved to the 32 states (Article 124). States run their own civil, family and criminal-enforcement codes, but criminal procedure, labour and commercial law were federalised to produce single national codes.Unitary with a decentralised structure of 23 regions and communes. Successive constitutions have promised fuller decentralisation, including provincial autonomy, which has not been implemented.Unitary. The state comprises Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique; Carriacou and Petite Martinique have a Ministry and local administration but no separate legislature.
How law is madeBills may be introduced by the President, either chamber, state legislatures or by citizens with 0.13% of the electoral roll. Both chambers must pass an identical text; the President may veto, and Congress overrides with two-thirds of each chamber. Constitutional amendments need two-thirds of Congress plus a majority of state legislatures (Article 135).Bills originate with the government or members of either chamber, are examined in committee, and must pass both the National Assembly and the Senate; the Assembly prevails on disagreement. The Haute Cour Constitutionnelle may review a law before promulgation, and organic laws must be referred to it as a matter of course.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.
Legal professionA law degree plus a cédula profesional from the Education Ministry licenses practice; there is no compulsory bar examination or single mandatory bar, which distinguishes Mexico from most of the region. Notaries public are a separate, strictly limited state-appointed profession with exclusive competence over real estate and company deeds.Avocats admitted to the Ordre des avocats de Madagascar after a law degree and professional training, alongside notaires for authenticated instruments and huissiers for service and enforcement — the standard French division of functions.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 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.