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	Saint LuciaReviewed	MalawiReviewed
Legal family	Mixed civil and common law	English common law with customary law
System of government	Constitutional monarchy	Presidential republic
Constitution	The Constitution of Saint Lucia	Constitution of the Republic of Malawi
In force since	1978	1994
Capital	Castries	Lilongwe
Official languages	English	English, Chichewa
Currency	East Caribbean dollar (XCD)	Malawian kwacha (MWK)
Population	180,000	20,900,000
Division of powers	Unitary. Parliament legislates for the whole state; the ten quarters are administrative, and local government operates through town and village councils with delegated powers.	Unitary with three regions and 28 districts administered by local councils. Traditional authorities exercise recognised functions over customary land and local dispute resolution.
How law is made	Bills pass three readings in the House of Assembly and the Senate before the Governor-General assents. The Senate may delay but not veto. Most constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority of the House, and certain entrenched provisions require a three-quarters majority plus approval by referendum.	Bills pass three readings in the National Assembly with committee scrutiny and are presented for presidential assent, which must be given or withheld within 21 days. Constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority, and amendments affecting entrenched provisions additionally require a referendum.
Legal profession	A fused profession of attorneys-at-law admitted by the High Court under the Legal Profession Act 2000, after a law degree and the Legal Education Certificate. Practitioners must be familiar with both the Civil Code and common-law technique, which is unusual in the region.	A fused profession of legal practitioners admitted by the High Court after a law degree, regulated by the Malawi Law Society under the Legal Education and Legal Practitioners Act.

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.