Contrary to the beliefs widely held in the U.S. regarding the nature and function of Mexico's legal system, Mexico does, in fact, enjoy a highly evolved and organized legal system which with few exceptions is functional. The origins of Mexico's legal system are both ancient and classical, based on the Greek, Roman and French legal systems, and the Mexican system shares more in common with other legal systems throughout the world (especially those in Latin America and most of continental Europe) than does the U.S. legal system. U.S. business people and foreign owned corporations doing business in Mexico must directly and indirectly deal with the Mexican legal system, even if they do not have an actual business presence in Mexico.