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	LesothoReviewed	MauritaniaReviewed	PeruReviewed
Legal family	Civil law	Mixed Roman-Dutch and English common law	Mixed (Islamic law and French civil law)	Civil law
System of government	Unitary presidential republic	Parliamentary constitutional monarchy	Unitary presidential republic	Unitary semi-presidential republic
Constitution	Constitution of the Republic of Paraguay	Constitution of Lesotho	Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania	Political Constitution of Peru
In force since	1992	1993	1991	1993
Capital	Asunción	Maseru	Nouakchott	Lima
Official languages	Spanish, Guaraní	Sesotho, English	Arabic, French, Pulaar, Soninke, Wolof	Spanish, Quechua, Aymara
Currency	Paraguayan guaraní (PYG)	Lesotho loti (LSL)	Ouguiya (MRU)	Peruvian sol (PEN)
Population	6,900,000	2,300,000	4,900,000	34,000,000
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 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.	Presidential system with a President elected for five years, a unicameral National Assembly since the 2017 abolition of the Senate, and a judiciary that includes Sharia jurisdiction in personal status and certain criminal matters.	Unitary and decentralised, with twenty-five regional governments and the Lima Metropolitan Municipality holding elected councils and administrative competence. Peasant and native communities exercise jurisdiction within their territory under Article 149 in coordination with the justices of the peace.
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 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 are examined in committee and voted by the National Assembly, then promulgated by the President. The Conseil constitutionnel may be seised before promulgation.	Bills come from Congress, the executive, regional governments or citizens. A single chamber debates in committee and plenary; a second vote is required unless exempted. The President may observe a bill, and Congress insists by absolute majority. Constitutional amendment needs an absolute majority in two successive ordinary legislatures, or a two-thirds vote plus referendum.
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 split profession in form — advocates and attorneys are separately admitted under the Legal Practitioners Act — though in practice many practitioners hold both admissions; the Law Society of Lesotho regulates the attorneys' branch.	Avocats admitted through the Ordre national des avocats; training combines French-style procedure with Islamic legal studies.	A law degree followed by a bachiller and título de abogado, then compulsory registration with one of the departmental colegios de abogados, which hold disciplinary power. Registration in one college permits practice nationwide. Notaries are a separate profession appointed by competitive examination.

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.