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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
AttributeParaguayReviewedAustriaReviewedMaltaReviewedLithuaniaReviewedAlgeriaReviewed
Legal familyCivil lawCivil lawMixed (civil and common law)Civil lawCivil law with Islamic law in personal status
System of governmentUnitary presidential republicFederal parliamentary republicUnitary parliamentary republicUnitary semi-presidential republicSemi-presidential republic
ConstitutionConstitution of the Republic of ParaguayBundes-Verfassungsgesetz (B-VG)Constitution of MaltaConstitution of the Republic of LithuaniaConstitution of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
In force since19921920196419922020
CapitalAsunciรณnViennaVallettaVilniusAlgiers
Official languagesSpanish, GuaranรญGermanMaltese, EnglishLithuanianArabic, Tamazight
CurrencyParaguayan guaranรญ (PYG)Euro (EUR)Euro (EUR)Euro (EUR)Algerian dinar (DZD)
Population6,900,0009,100,000540,0002,860,00045,600,000
Division of powersUnitary with seventeen departments and the capital district, each with an elected governor and departmental board holding administrative and limited fiscal competence. Legislative power is national.Nine Lรคnder hold their own constitutions, parliaments and governments, but the federation retains far more legislative power than in Germany or Switzerland; much Lรคnder activity is administering federal law (mittelbare Bundesverwaltung). Three separate high courts sit at the apex, for constitutional, administrative and ordinary matters respectively.A parliamentary republic with a ceremonial President, a Cabinet led by the Prime Minister answerable to the House of Representatives and an independent judiciary.Semi-presidential government with a directly elected President focused on foreign and security policy, a Government answerable to the Seimas, and a separate Constitutional Court.Unitary, with 58 wilayas headed by walis appointed by the President alongside elected wilaya assemblies, and communes below them. Local bodies administer central policy and hold limited own-source revenue; they do not legislate.
How law is madeBills may start in either chamber and must pass both. The President may object in whole or part; Congress overcomes an objection by absolute majority in both chambers. Constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds vote of each chamber and ratification by referendum; wholesale reform requires a constituent assembly.Bills originate with the government, members of the Nationalrat, the Bundesrat or a popular initiative, and pass three readings in the Nationalrat. The Bundesrat may object but can normally be overridden. The Federal President authenticates the law, the Chancellor countersigns, and it is published in the Bundesgesetzblatt.Bills are passed by the House of Representatives and assented to by the President before publication in the Government Gazette.Bills are adopted by the Seimas and signed by the President, who may veto and return a bill for reconsideration.Bills come from the government or from at least twenty members of either chamber. They are examined in committee, passed by the People's National Assembly and then the Council of the Nation, with a joint commission resolving disagreement. Organic laws require an absolute majority in the lower house and a three-quarters majority in the upper, plus mandatory constitutional review. The President promulgates within thirty days and may seek a second reading requiring a two-thirds majority to overcome.
Legal professionA law degree and registration of the title with the Supreme Court, which maintains the roll and exercises discipline. Bar membership is voluntary. Because both Spanish and Guaranรญ are official, courts must provide interpretation, and practitioners outside Asunciรณn are commonly bilingual.A Rechtsanwalt qualifies through a law degree, five years of practical training including at least three in a law firm and some months at court, and the bar examination. Admission is via the regional bar chambers under the umbrella of the ร–sterreichischer Rechtsanwaltskammertag. Notaries are a separate profession with appointments limited in number.Advocates are admitted to the bar after a law degree and warrant; legal procurators and notaries handle procedural filing and authentication of deeds.Advocates belong to the Lithuanian Bar Association; notaries handle property, company and succession formalities.Avocats are admitted through regional bars coordinated by the Union Nationale des Ordres des Avocats, with separate accreditation required for appearance before the Supreme Court and Council of State. Judges and prosecutors form a single career magistracy trained at the ร‰cole Supรฉrieure de la Magistrature. Notaries and bailiffs are regulated public officers in the French tradition, and notarial deeds are compulsory for real-property transfers.

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.