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
Attribute	ParaguayReviewed	EcuadorReviewed	BelizeReviewed	GabonIndexed
Legal family	Civil law	Civil law	Common law	Civil law (French tradition)
System of government	Unitary presidential republic	Unitary presidential republic	Parliamentary constitutional monarchy	Unitary presidential republic
Constitution	Constitution of the Republic of Paraguay	Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador	Belize Constitution	Constitution of the Gabonese Republic
In force since	1992	2008	1981	2024
Capital	Asunción	Quito	Belmopan	Libreville
Official languages	Spanish, Guaraní	Spanish, Quechua, Shuar	English, Spanish, Belize Kriol, Q'eqchi', Mopan	French
Currency	Paraguayan guaraní (PYG)	United States dollar (USD)	Belize dollar (BZD)	Central African CFA franc (XAF)
Population	6,900,000	18,200,000	410,000	2,500,000
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 and decentralised, with twenty-four provinces and autonomous decentralised governments at provincial, cantonal and parish level. Indigenous authorities exercise their own jurisdiction under Article 171, subject to constitutional review.	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.	Presidential system under the 2024 constitution, with a bicameral Parliament of National Assembly and Senate and a judiciary headed by the Court of Cassation, Council of State and Constitutional Court.
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.	Bills go to the Assembly from members, the President, the Court, citizens or autonomous governments, and need two debates. The President may fully or partially object; a full objection can only be overcome after a year or by a two-thirds vote. Urgent economic bills become law by decree if the Assembly fails to act in thirty days. Amendment routes differ by depth, from Assembly vote to 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 committee and plenary in both chambers and are promulgated by the President. The Constitutional Court may review a text before promulgation on referral.
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 law degree plus registration in the Forense registry of the Consejo de la Judicatura, and usually membership of a provincial colegio de abogados. The Judicature Council holds disciplinary power. Public defence is provided by the Defensoría Pública, a separate autonomous body.	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 through the Ordre des avocats du Gabon; notaires and huissiers are separate regulated professions.

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.