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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
AttributeMonacoReviewedMoroccoReviewedAustraliaReviewed
Legal familyCivil lawCivil law with Islamic law in personal statusCommon law
System of governmentConstitutional hereditary monarchyConstitutional monarchyFederal parliamentary constitutional monarchy
ConstitutionConstitution of the Principality of MonacoConstitution of the Kingdom of MoroccoCommonwealth of Australia Constitution Act
In force since196220111901
CapitalMonacoRabatCanberra
Official languagesFrenchArabic, TamazightEnglish
CurrencyEuro (EUR)Moroccan dirham (MAD)Australian Dollar (AUD)
Population39,00037,500,00026,800,000
Division of powersA unitary state of about two square kilometres with a single commune. Legislative power is exercised jointly by the Prince and the National Council; executive power belongs to the Prince, exercised through the Minister of State and the Government Council; judicial power is delegated by the Prince to the courts, with the Tribunal Suprรชme acting as both constitutional and supreme administrative court.Unitary but substantially regionalised since 2015, with twelve regions holding directly elected councils and their own budgets under the advanced regionalisation programme. Regions have executive competences in development planning and transport; they do not legislate.Chapter III strictly separates federal judicial power; the High Court polices the boundary and may invalidate legislation for exceeding it.
How law is madeA bill may be initiated by the Prince or proposed by the National Council. Government bills are laid before the Council, examined in committee and voted; adoption requires the agreement of both the Prince and the Council. The Prince then promulgates the law by sovereign ordinance and it is published in the Journal de Monaco.Bills may be introduced by the head of government or by members of either chamber. They pass through committee and plenary in both houses, with the House of Representatives having the final word where the chambers disagree. Organic laws must be referred to the Constitutional Court before promulgation. The King promulgates statutes by dahir within thirty days, and may ask parliament to reconsider a bill or submit it to referendum.Bills pass both chambers and receive Royal Assent. A persistent deadlock can trigger a double dissolution and, ultimately, a joint sitting.
Legal professionA small bar of avocats-dรฉfenseurs, avocats and avocats stagiaires, organised as the Ordre des Avocats, with admission requiring Monegasque nationality preference, a law degree and a traineeship. French avocats may appear in specified circumstances. Notaries are appointed by sovereign ordinance and are few in number.Avocats are admitted to one of the regional bars and organised nationally through the Association des Barreaux du Maroc; practice before the Court of Cassation requires additional seniority. Notaries and adouls coexist โ€” the notaire handles conveyancing and company documents in the French tradition, while the adoul draws up marriage and inheritance instruments under Islamic law. Judges are career appointments trained at the Institut Supรฉrieur de la Magistrature.Admission is state-based but nationally recognised; practitioners may be admitted as barristers and solicitors, with an independent bar in most states.

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 โ€” the constitutional detail behind a one-line summary is often the part that governs the outcome.