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.
Select up to six documented jurisdictions
Clear selectionAfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAndorraAngolaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBruneiBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusCzechiaDR CongoDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGreeceGrenadaGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaitiHoly See (Vatican City)HondurasHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIranIraqIrelandIsraelItalyIvory CoastJamaicaJapanJordanKazakhstanKenyaKiribatiKuwaitKyrgyzstanLaosLatviaLebanonLesothoLiberiaLibyaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaliMaltaMarshall IslandsMauritaniaMauritiusMexicoMicronesiaMoldovaMonacoMongoliaMontenegroMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarNamibiaNauruNepalNetherlandsNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNorth KoreaNorth MacedoniaNorwayOmanPakistanPalauPalestinePanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalQatarRepublic of the CongoRomaniaRussiaRwandaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSamoaSan MarinoSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovakiaSloveniaSolomon IslandsSomaliaSouth AfricaSouth KoreaSouth SudanSpainSri LankaSudanSurinameSwedenSwitzerlandSyriaSรฃo Tomรฉ and PrรญncipeTajikistanTanzaniaThailandThe BahamasTimor-LesteTogoTongaTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanTuvaluUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited StatesUruguayUzbekistanVanuatuVenezuelaVietnamYemenZambiaZimbabwe
| Attribute | ParaguayReviewed | GrenadaReviewed | MexicoReviewed | TurkeyReviewed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legal family | Civil law | Common law | Civil law | Civil law |
| System of government | Unitary presidential republic | Constitutional monarchy | Federal presidential republic | Unitary presidential republic |
| Constitution | Constitution of the Republic of Paraguay | The Grenada Constitution | Political Constitution of the United Mexican States | Constitution of the Republic of Tรผrkiye |
| In force since | 1992 | 1973 | 1917 | 1982 |
| Capital | Asunciรณn | Saint George's | Mexico City | Ankara |
| Official languages | Spanish, Guaranรญ | English | Spanish, Nahuatl, Yucatec Maya | Turkish |
| Currency | Paraguayan guaranรญ (PYG) | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) | Mexican peso (MXN) | Turkish lira (TRY) |
| Population | 6,900,000 | 126,000 | 130,000,000 | 85,300,000 |
| 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. The state comprises Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique; Carriacou and Petite Martinique have a Ministry and local administration but no separate legislature. | Federal. Powers not expressly granted to the union are reserved to the 32 states (Article 124). States run their own civil, family and criminal-enforcement codes, but criminal procedure, labour and commercial law were federalised to produce single national codes. | Unitary. 81 provinces administered by centrally appointed governors, alongside elected metropolitan and district municipalities with their own mayors and councils. Local government has genuine budgetary weight in the large cities but no legislative competence. |
| 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 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 may be introduced by the President, either chamber, state legislatures or by citizens with 0.13% of the electoral roll. Both chambers must pass an identical text; the President may veto, and Congress overrides with two-thirds of each chamber. Constitutional amendments need two-thirds of Congress plus a majority of state legislatures (Article 135). | Bills are introduced by members or the executive, examined in committee and passed by the Assembly. The President may return a law once for reconsideration; if the Assembly re-adopts it unchanged the President must promulgate it or refer it to the Constitutional Court. Presidential decrees take effect on publication in the Official Gazette but lapse where the Assembly later legislates on the same subject. |
| 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 Guaranรญ are official, courts must provide interpretation, and practitioners outside Asunciรณn are commonly bilingual. | 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. | A law degree plus a cรฉdula profesional from the Education Ministry licenses practice; there is no compulsory bar examination or single mandatory bar, which distinguishes Mexico from most of the region. Notaries public are a separate, strictly limited state-appointed profession with exclusive competence over real estate and company deeds. | A single profession of avukat, admitted after a four-year law faculty degree and a one-year traineeship, with compulsory membership of a provincial bar association under the Union of Turkish Bar Associations. Representation by counsel is mandatory for companies in most litigation. Judges and prosecutors form a separate career entered by examination and the Justice Academy, and notaries hold a licensed monopoly over authenticated instruments โ property transfers require both notarial and land registry formality. |
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.