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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
AttributeParaguayReviewedDR CongoReviewedLesothoReviewedAustraliaReviewed
Legal familyCivil lawCivil law (Belgian tradition)Mixed Roman-Dutch and English common lawCommon law
System of governmentUnitary presidential republicUnitary semi-presidential republicParliamentary constitutional monarchyFederal parliamentary constitutional monarchy
ConstitutionConstitution of the Republic of ParaguayConstitution of the Democratic Republic of the CongoConstitution of LesothoCommonwealth of Australia Constitution Act
In force since1992200619931901
CapitalAsunciรณnKinshasaMaseruCanberra
Official languagesSpanish, GuaranรญFrench, Lingala, Swahili, Kikongo, TshilubaSesotho, EnglishEnglish
CurrencyParaguayan guaranรญ (PYG)Congolese Franc (CDF)Lesotho loti (LSL)Australian Dollar (AUD)
Population6,900,000102,300,0002,300,00026,800,000
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.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 with ten districts, and a recognised hierarchy of chiefs exercising customary functions over land allocation and local dispute resolution. The Senate includes the twenty-two principal chiefs ex officio.Chapter III strictly separates federal judicial power; the High Court polices the boundary and may invalidate legislation for exceeding it.
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 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 the National Assembly, go to the Senate for review, and receive royal assent. The Senate can delay but not indefinitely block ordinary bills. Amendments to entrenched constitutional provisions require a two-thirds majority and, for the most protected clauses, a referendum.Bills pass both chambers and receive Royal Assent. A persistent deadlock can trigger a double dissolution and, ultimately, a joint sitting.
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.Avocats admitted to provincial bars under the national Ordre des avocats after a law degree and traineeship; dรฉfenseurs judiciaires assist in lower courts.A split profession in form โ€” advocates and attorneys are separately admitted under the Legal Practitioners Act โ€” though in practice many practitioners hold both admissions; the Law Society of Lesotho regulates the attorneys' branch.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.