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
Attribute	ParaguayReviewed	BelizeReviewed	DR CongoReviewed	GrenadaReviewed	MaltaReviewed
Legal family	Civil law	Common law	Civil law (Belgian tradition)	Common law	Mixed (civil and common law)
System of government	Unitary presidential republic	Parliamentary constitutional monarchy	Unitary semi-presidential republic	Constitutional monarchy	Unitary parliamentary republic
Constitution	Constitution of the Republic of Paraguay	Belize Constitution	Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo	The Grenada Constitution	Constitution of Malta
In force since	1992	1981	2006	1973	1964
Capital	Asunción	Belmopan	Kinshasa	Saint George's	Valletta
Official languages	Spanish, Guaraní	English, Spanish, Belize Kriol, Q'eqchi', Mopan	French, Lingala, Swahili, Kikongo, Tshiluba	English	Maltese, English
Currency	Paraguayan guaraní (PYG)	Belize dollar (BZD)	Congolese Franc (CDF)	East Caribbean dollar (XCD)	Euro (EUR)
Population	6,900,000	410,000	102,300,000	126,000	540,000
Division of powers	Unitary 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.	Unitary, with six districts and elected town and village councils. Maya communal land rights in Toledo are recognised through the courts rather than by statute, and implementation is supervised by the CCJ.	Semi-presidential: a directly elected President, a Prime Minister from the parliamentary majority, and a bicameral Parliament. The 2006 constitution split the former Supreme Court into three separate apex courts.	Unitary. The state comprises Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique; Carriacou and Petite Martinique have a Ministry and local administration but no separate legislature.	A parliamentary republic with a ceremonial President, a Cabinet led by the Prime Minister answerable to the House of Representatives and an independent judiciary.
How law is made	Bills 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.	A bill passes three readings in the House of Representatives, then the Senate, and receives the Governor-General's assent. Money bills originate in the House. Constitutional amendments need a two-thirds majority of all House members, and certain entrenched provisions require three-quarters.	Bills pass both chambers; persistent disagreement is resolved by a joint commission or a final National Assembly vote. The President promulgates within the constitutional period, and the Constitutional Court may be seised beforehand.	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.	Bills are passed by the House of Representatives and assented to by the President before publication in the Government Gazette.
Legal profession	A 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 Guaraní are official, courts must provide interpretation, and practitioners outside Asunción are commonly bilingual.	A fused profession of attorneys-at-law admitted by the High Court under the Legal Profession Act, with the Bar Association of Belize exercising disciplinary functions. Commonwealth qualifications are recognised on application, which keeps a small bar workable.	Avocats admitted to provincial bars under the national Ordre des avocats after a law degree and traineeship; défenseurs judiciaires assist in lower courts.	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.	Advocates are admitted to the bar after a law degree and warrant; legal procurators and notaries handle procedural filing and authentication of deeds.

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.