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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
AttributeParaguayReviewedMicronesiaReviewedDR CongoReviewedSeychellesReviewedNamibiaReviewed
Legal familyCivil lawMixed common law with customary lawCivil law (Belgian tradition)Mixed French civil law and English common lawMixed Roman-Dutch and English common law
System of governmentUnitary presidential republicFederal republic in free association with the United StatesUnitary semi-presidential republicPresidential republicSemi-presidential republic
ConstitutionConstitution of the Republic of ParaguayConstitution of the Federated States of MicronesiaConstitution of the Democratic Republic of the CongoConstitution of the Republic of SeychellesConstitution of the Republic of Namibia
In force since19921979200619931990
CapitalAsunciรณnPalikirKinshasaVictoriaWindhoek
Official languagesSpanish, GuaranรญEnglish, Chuukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, KosraeanFrench, Lingala, Swahili, Kikongo, TshilubaSeychellois Creole, English, FrenchEnglish
CurrencyParaguayan guaranรญ (PYG)United States dollar (USD)Congolese Franc (CDF)Seychellois rupee (SCR)Namibian dollar (NAD)
Population6,900,000115,000102,300,000130,0002,600,000
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.Genuine federalism. The national government holds foreign affairs, defence, immigration, currency and interstate commerce; everything else, including land tenure, is state or local. Each state has its own constitution and supreme court, and Yap's constitution creates Councils of Pilung and Tamol โ€” traditional leaders' councils with power to disapprove state legislation affecting tradition and custom.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 27 administrative districts. The outer islands are administered centrally, and the Seychelles' extensive exclusive economic zone is a significant focus of regulation.Unitary with 14 administrative regions and elected regional councils, which also constitute the National Council, the upper chamber. Traditional authorities exercise recognised functions over communal land and customary law.
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 Congress and are signed by the President, who has a veto that Congress may override. Because the four at-large senators serve longer terms and are the pool from which the President is drawn, national politics is structured around balancing the states rather than around parties โ€” there are no formal political parties. Constitutional amendments may be proposed by Congress, by a convention, or by popular initiative, and require ratification by three-quarters of the voters in three of the four states.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 the National Assembly with committee scrutiny and receive presidential assent; the President may refer a bill to the Constitutional Court on a question of constitutionality before assent. Constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority, and amendments to certain protected provisions additionally require a referendum.Bills pass the National Assembly through three readings, then go to the National Council for review. The Council may confirm, propose amendments, or object; the Assembly can override an objection by a two-thirds majority. The President then assents, and constitutional amendments require two-thirds of both chambers and may never diminish the rights chapter.
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.Admission is to the FSM Supreme Court, with rules that recognise foreign qualifications, so many practitioners trained in the United States. A distinctive feature is the trial counselor: a non-lawyer licensed to appear in certain courts after examination, which is how most representation is delivered outside the main centres. Practitioners must often hold admission both nationally and in the relevant state.Avocats admitted to provincial bars under the national Ordre des avocats after a law degree and traineeship; dรฉfenseurs judiciaires assist in lower courts.A fused profession of attorneys-at-law admitted by the Supreme Court after a recognised law qualification and pupillage, with the Bar Association of Seychelles representing practitioners.A fused profession under the Legal Practitioners Act: a single class of legal practitioner is admitted after a law degree and the Justice Training Centre's postgraduate course, and the Law Society of Namibia regulates practice.

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.