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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
AttributeParaguayReviewedUruguayReviewedMexicoReviewedLithuaniaReviewedComorosReviewed
Legal familyCivil lawCivil lawCivil lawCivil lawMixed French civil law and Islamic law
System of governmentUnitary presidential republicUnitary presidential republicFederal presidential republicUnitary semi-presidential republicFederal presidential republic
ConstitutionConstitution of the Republic of ParaguayConstitution of the Oriental Republic of UruguayPolitical Constitution of the United Mexican StatesConstitution of the Republic of LithuaniaConstitution of the Union of the Comoros
In force since19921967191719922001
CapitalAsunciรณnMontevideoMexico CityVilniusMoroni
Official languagesSpanish, GuaranรญSpanishSpanish, Nahuatl, Yucatec MayaLithuanianComorian, Arabic, French
CurrencyParaguayan guaranรญ (PYG)Uruguayan peso (UYU)Mexican peso (MXN)Euro (EUR)Comorian franc (KMF)
Population6,900,0003,400,000130,000,0002,860,000850,000
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.Unitary. Nineteen departments have elected intendentes and juntas with administrative and local taxing competence, and municipalities were added in 2010, but all legislative power belongs to the General Assembly.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.Semi-presidential government with a directly elected President focused on foreign and security policy, a Government answerable to the Seimas, and a separate Constitutional Court.Federal. Grande Comore, Anjouan and Mohรฉli each have a governor and their own assembly with substantial autonomy over local administration, while the Union handles defence, currency, foreign affairs and nationality.
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; disagreement is resolved by the General Assembly sitting jointly. The executive may veto, overcome by three-fifths of the joint assembly. Distinctively, 25% of registered voters can force a referendum to repeal a statute within one year of promulgation, and 10% can initiate a constitutional plebiscite.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 adopted by the Seimas and signed by the President, who may veto and return a bill for reconsideration.Bills originate with the government or members of the Assembly of the Union, are examined in committee and passed by the Assembly, then promulgated by the President. Matters within island competence are legislated by the island assemblies, and disputes over the boundary between Union and island competence are a standing feature of Comorian constitutional practice.
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.A degree from the Universidad de la Repรบblica or an accredited private faculty confers the title of abogado, with registration by the Supreme Court. Membership of the Colegio de Abogados del Uruguay is voluntary; the Supreme Court exercises discipline. Escribanos pรบblicos are a separate profession with exclusive competence over conveyancing.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.Advocates belong to the Lithuanian Bar Association; notaries handle property, company and succession formalities.A small bar of avocats admitted after French-model legal training, supplemented by qadis who require religious-law qualification for the personal-status jurisdiction; many practitioners train in France or Madagascar.

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.