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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| Attribute | PanamaReviewed | MauritiusReviewed |
|---|---|---|
| Legal family | Civil law | Mixed French civil law and English common law |
| System of government | Unitary presidential republic | Parliamentary republic |
| Constitution | Political Constitution of the Republic of Panama | Constitution of Mauritius |
| In force since | 1972 | 1968 |
| Capital | Panama City | Port Louis |
| Official languages | Spanish | English, French, Mauritian Creole |
| Currency | Balboa (US dollar in circulation) (PAB) | Mauritian rupee (MUR) |
| Population | 4,400,000 | 1,260,000 |
| Division of powers | Unitary, with ten provinces and five indigenous comarcas. The comarcas — Guna Yala, Emberá-Wounaan, Ngäbe-Buglé, Guna de Madugandí and Guna de Wargandí — hold recognised collective land title and internal authority. | Unitary, with Rodrigues holding a statutory autonomous status and its own Regional Assembly, and Agalega and St Brandon administered as outer islands. |
| How law is made | Bills receive three debates in the National Assembly. The President may object in whole or in part; the Assembly insists with a two-thirds vote, after which the President must promulgate unless the objection was constitutional, in which case the Supreme Court decides. | Bills pass three readings in the National Assembly with committee scrutiny and receive presidential assent. Constitutional amendments require a three-quarters majority, and certain entrenched provisions — including the electoral and 'best loser' arrangements — require both a three-quarters majority and, for some, a referendum. |
| Legal profession | Practice requires a Panamanian law degree and a licence from the Supreme Court; the Colegio Nacional de Abogados is influential but membership is voluntary. Only Panamanian lawyers may appear in court, which is why offshore work is routinely structured through local counsel. | A three-branch profession unusual in the region: barristers hold rights of audience, attorneys handle procedure and instruct barristers, and notaries deal with conveyancing and authenticated instruments under the civil-law tradition. |
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.