Capital Cities and Foreign Legal Research

Recently, I was tasked with a particularly complicated legal research question which involved one of my favorite topics: capital cities. The information and analysis we needed was only available to us once we managed to see the pieces through the thread of this place’s capital city. The crucial need to know the capital city of this place was not apparent to us at the beginning of the legal research journey. We had clearly ignored an important step in every foreign or national legal research. But what’s in a capital city? And how can it help you in your legal research needs?

By looking at any world map, capital cities seem to be easy to detect and straightforward: one country = one capital city. They are simply ubiquitous and they have always been. Even in cases when there are different cities vying for the official title or not clear which one is indeed the de jure capital city, there is always one center of power which somehow becomes the de facto capital city and its geopolitical centrality is decisive to understand the country or jurisdiction at hand. This same centrality explains why knowing the capital city is simply paramount for your legal research. Allow me to further illuminate this point and to provide a few considerations to keep in mind.

First, for a significant number of countries in the world, their respective capitals become synonymous with the countries themselves. The role of the capital city is so indispensable and preeminent that the name of the capital city may become the country itself. Mexico City, Guatemala City, Luxembourg City, Djibouti City, Kuwait City, Panama City are some of the obvious examples of this phenomenon. A country that names its capital city after the same name of the country gives you a strong indication that this agglomeration has become or there is an intentional purpose that it becomes synonymous with the entire country.

In most countries in the world, several layers consolidate the eminent image of this city to both internal and external researchers as well as observers. Some of these layers include being the largest population center in the country, the biggest economic engine, the epicenter of cultural institutions and their influential role in the country’s identity, the location for major historical events, even the center of former empires, explicitly created to take that central role and/or the current main seat of the central government, including the judicial branch and hosting influential courts such as the country’s supreme court or constitutional court, among others.

Examples of these layers previously mentioned include capital cities such as Montevideo, Cairo, Bangkok, Paris and Gaberone. Based on the latest national census data from 2023, Montevideo now accounts for close to 40% of the country’s population. This data is significant at a national level, considering Uruguay’s total population has plateaued around 3.3 million people. Since ancient times and throughout its history, Cairo has remained at the center of Egypt’s cultural and national identity. Throughout the different governing iterations and power structures, Cairo has remained unquestioningly the area’s gravitational center. Since the economic boom of the 1990s in Southeast Asia, Bangkok has remained dominant economically speaking not only nationally in Thailand, but also regionally and internationally. Similar to Cairo, Paris has historically played a central role in the history of France to the point of becoming synonymous with the country itself. Lastly in the case of Gaberone, the capital city represents a unique case of a planned capital city which eventually became also the largest city in Botswana. These particular layers and many others cement the idea that this particular capital city becomes the country itself.

Second, for those of you pursuing legal research specifically, you may observe this scenario in both primary and secondary sources of law in your countries of research. Legal and government information is produced in the capital city and sometimes it might only mention the capital city and not the country at all or not prominently. Administrative courts in Stockholm (e.g., Kammarrätten i Stockholm) are cited simply with “Stockholm,” even though rulings are of national significance. Corte Suprema de Justicia de la Nación decisions are often cited from Buenos Aires only, as the court sits there. Angola ‘s laws (Lei do Orçamento Geral do Estado) are printed in Luanda, usually without a country reference. Compilations of laws and decrees in Lebanon (Recueil des Lois et Décrets) usually list Beirut alone. Ministerial reports (Justice, Finance, etc.) commonly have imprints of Beirut rather than “Lebanon.” Codifications of law (e.g., Civil Code, Criminal Code, Commercial Code compilations) are published with the imprint Seoul only.

As I alluded to before, the equation one country = one capital city is not always so apparent. Therefore, there are important scenarios to consider when employing this strategy in your legal research strategy.

Countries may change capital cities. I suspect Slaw readers will not have a problem understanding this consideration. Prior to Ottawa, other cities were designated as capital cities throughout other chapters in Canadian history. The same is true for so many countries, at least historically speaking. As a researcher, it’s important to keep in mind that this is a phenomenon which continues to happen to this day in other countries as well. After many years with Alma-Ata as its primary city, Kazakhstan officially changed its capital city to Astana in 1997. In 2018, Burundi initiated a process to move its capital city from Bujumbura to the country’s former capital city during the Kingdom of Burundi, Gitega. Furthermore, Indonesia is another country in the process of changing its current capital city, Jakarta to a new one, Nusantara in a more central part of the country.

Countries may have two official capital cities. Different branches of governments may be officially dispersed in two capital cities with special distinctions such as the administrative capital, seat of government, judicial or constitutional capital. In the Americas, Bolivia is the only country with two official capital cities. La Paz functions as the administrative capital with both the executive and legislative branches whereas Sucre serves as the official judicial capital. Besides the current Supreme Tribunal of Justice, Sucre has hosted in the past other highest instance courts such as the defunct Supreme Court of Justice and the Real Audiencia de Charcos during Spanish colonial times.Furthermore, Sri Lanka and Malaysia both embody this dispersion, with Colombo and Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte in Sri Lanka dividing administrative and legislative functions, and Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya in Malaysia playing parallel roles. South Africa represents a particularly striking case, with Pretoria, Cape Town, and Bloemfontein designated as administrative, legislative, and judicial capitals respectively.This is the only country in the world with three official capital cities.

Sometimes the distinction lies between de jure and de facto capitals. The Netherlands’ Amsterdam (constitutional capital) contrasts with The Hague (seat of government and international courts). In Afghanistan, Kabul historically competed with Kandahar for centrality, while in Switzerland, Bern holds its unique status as the federal city rather than an official “capital.”

Capital cities can also cede prominence to economic powerhouses that rival or even overshadow them in visibility. Sydney, São Paulo, Mumbai, and Shanghai, while not political capitals, are often the true economic engines of their respective nations and frequently shape legal and policy debates.

The matter grows even more complex with capital cities of disputed territories. Legal and political documents may originate from different centers depending on recognition: Jerusalem or Ramallah, Stepanakert (Nagorno-Karabakh), Pristina, or Taipei. For legal researchers, the choice of “capital” listed can reveal much about questions of legitimacy, sovereignty, and recognition.

Finally, we cannot overlook the role of capital cities of international and regional organizations. These cities themselves become legal capitals beyond their national boundaries. Brussels (European Union), Addis Ababa (African Union), Arusha (East African Court of Justice), San José (Inter-American Court of Human Rights), New York (United Nations), Geneva (UN agencies and WTO), and The Hague (International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court) all serve as legal nerve centers in their own right.

In short, capital cities are not just dots on a map. For legal research, they are portals—sometimes clear, sometimes contested—into the legal order of a state, a region, or even the world. Recognizing their centrality, complexity, and nuance is an essential step in every legal research journey.

If you’re interested in the topic, these are some sources to start your research from:

Gemechu, M. M. (2024). Federalism and the Governance of Contested Capital Cities: Comparing Addis Ababa and Brussels. Journal of Asian and African Studies, 59(2), 470-491.

Mabin, A. (2011). South African capital cities. Capital cities in Africa: Power and powerlessness, 168-191.

Marais, L., & Twala, C. (2021). Bloemfontein: The rise and fall of South Africa’s judicial capital. African Geographical Review, 40(1), 49-62.

Rawat, R. (2005). Capital city relocation: Global-local perspectives in the search for an alternative modernity. Unpublished Paper, Department of Geography, York University, Toronto, Canada.

Stewart, C. S. (2008). A case study: Canberra–Australia’s National Capital. WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment, 117, 421-431.

Worku, A. B. (2022). The Practice and Challenges of Capital Cities in a Federal System: The Case of Addis Ababa. Ethiopian Journal of Federal Studies, 8(1), 73-106.