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	TongaReviewed	Equatorial GuineaIndexed	AustriaReviewed
Legal family	Common law with customary law	Civil law (Spanish tradition)	Civil law
System of government	Constitutional monarchy	Unitary presidential republic	Federal parliamentary republic
Constitution	Act of Constitution of Tonga	Fundamental Law of Equatorial Guinea	Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz (B-VG)
In force since	1875	1991	1920
Capital	Nuku'alofa	Malabo	Vienna
Official languages	Tongan, English	Spanish, French, Portuguese	German
Currency	Tongan paʻanga (TOP)	Central African CFA franc (XAF)	Euro (EUR)
Population	105,000	1,700,000	9,100,000
Division of powers	Unitary. The Legislative Assembly legislates for the whole kingdom, and the island divisions of Tongatapu, Vava'u, Ha'apai, 'Eua and the Niuas are administrative districts headed by governors. Below that, town and district officers are elected under the Fakafekau'aki and District and Town Officers Act.	Presidential system with a Vice-President and Prime Minister, a bicameral Parliament of Chamber of Deputies and Senate, and a judiciary headed by the Supreme Court of Justice.	Nine Länder hold their own constitutions, parliaments and governments, but the federation retains far more legislative power than in Germany or Switzerland; much Länder activity is administering federal law (mittelbare Bundesverwaltung). Three separate high courts sit at the apex, for constitutional, administrative and ordinary matters respectively.
How law is made	Bills pass three readings in the Legislative Assembly and require the King's assent, which is a real rather than purely formal step. Ordinary bills need a simple majority. Amendments to the Constitution require a majority in the Assembly at three separate readings and the consent of the King and Privy Council, and clause 79 forbids any amendment affecting the law of liberty, the succession to the throne or the titles and hereditary estates of the nobles.	Bills pass the Chamber of Deputies and Senate and are promulgated by the President, who may return a text for reconsideration.	Bills originate with the government, members of the Nationalrat, the Bundesrat or a popular initiative, and pass three readings in the Nationalrat. The Bundesrat may object but can normally be overridden. The Federal President authenticates the law, the Chancellor countersigns, and it is published in the Bundesgesetzblatt.
Legal profession	Law practitioners are admitted by the Chief Justice and licensed under the Law Practitioners Act, with the Tonga Law Society as the professional body. Most qualify overseas or at the University of the South Pacific. A practitioner working on land must know the Land Act's allotment system rather than general property law, because the constitutional bar on selling land means conveyancing in the ordinary sense does not exist.	Abogados admitted through the Ilustre Colegio de Abogados; practice requires competence in both Spanish codes and French-language OHADA texts.	A Rechtsanwalt qualifies through a law degree, five years of practical training including at least three in a law firm and some months at court, and the bar examination. Admission is via the regional bar chambers under the umbrella of the Österreichischer Rechtsanwaltskammertag. Notaries are a separate profession with appointments limited in number.

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.