Legislative Chambers - Unicameral or Bicameral?

This document seeks to provide guidance to emerging democracies on the issue of whether the legislative branch should have one chamber, or two. It provides a detailed description of the two structures of the legislature, including their origins, common organization and functions, and their respective advantages. The paper ends with a discussion of the methods of reconciling the functions and powers of a two chamber legislature. These include: giving one chamber the final say, defining the power of the chambers depending on the nature of the legislation, and forcing agreement between the two chambers at the risk of killing the proposed law and/or dissolving the legislature.