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
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| Attribute | São Tomé and PríncipeIndexed | Costa RicaReviewed |
|---|---|---|
| Legal family | Civil law (Portuguese tradition) | Civil law |
| System of government | Unitary semi-presidential republic | Unitary presidential republic |
| Constitution | Constitution of the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe | Political Constitution of the Republic of Costa Rica |
| In force since | 1990 | 1949 |
| Capital | São Tomé | San José |
| Official languages | Portuguese | Spanish |
| Currency | São Tomé and Príncipe Dobra (STN) | Costa Rican colón (CRC) |
| Population | 230,000 | 5,100,000 |
| Division of powers | Semi-presidential: a directly elected President with veto and dissolution powers, a Prime Minister accountable to the National Assembly, and an independent judiciary. | Unitary, with seven provinces that have no legislative power. Municipalities have constitutionally guaranteed autonomy over local services and land use. |
| How law is made | Bills are debated and voted by the National Assembly and sent to the President for promulgation; the President may veto, returning the text with a message. | A bill passes two debates in the Legislative Assembly. The President may veto within ten working days; the Assembly overrides with two-thirds. Any deputy may refer a bill to the Sala Constitucional for pre-enactment review, and the chamber's finding of a procedural defect is binding. |
| Legal profession | Advogados admitted through the Ordem dos Advogados; the profession is very small and many practitioners train in Portugal. | Practice requires enrolment with the Colegio de Abogados y Abogadas de Costa Rica, which holds disciplinary power. Notaries are lawyers holding a separate notarial licence supervised by the Dirección Nacional de Notariado. |
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.