Civil Law refers to the system of law concerned with disputes between private parties and providing relief to the affected parties. Civil Law is rather broad in terms of subsets, and it can most commonly include tort law, family law, and contract law.
Civil Law vs Criminal Law:
Civil law should not be confused with criminal law, as they are completely different types of law with different rules and practices in place. Because of this, understanding criminal law and how it contrasts with civil law is one of the easiest ways to understand the topic.
First, unlike civil law, criminal law works to punish those who commit wrongs against society (public or the state) and these wrongful acts are commonly known as crimes/criminal actions. In contrast, civil law deals with private disputes between individuals and the wrongdoing isn’t necessarily against society. Some examples of criminal law include things like murder or assault, which is a major wrongdoing against society. A common example of civil law is a car accident wrongfully caused by one of the drivers, which is a private dispute between 2 parties.
In addition, because criminal law is a wrongdoing against society, a criminal case is started by the government either at the state or federal level depending on the type of crime. However, in a civil suit, anyone can start a case known as a civil lawsuit against another individual.
Additionally, because criminal law tends to deal with issues that society deems as wrong, the punishments tend to be much stricter and can include things like imprisonment (which cannot be issued in civil law) and possible fines. However, in civil law, the punishments usually tend to be constrained to monetary (money) punishments, known as damages.
Furthermore, because of these stricter punishments, the government's representative (known as the prosecution) must prove “beyond a reasonable doubt” that a person is guilty of a crime, meaning that no reasonable doubt can remain that the person who is charged with a crime actually did the crime. In contrast, civil cases hold a burden of proof known as “preponderance of the evidence”, which essentially means that it’s more likely than not that the person being sued is liable. Additionally, some elements of civil cases hold a burden of proof known as "clear and convincing evidence", depending on the jurisdiction.
Additionally, the general rules and rights of the accused vary greatly in criminal and civil trials. For example, a defendant in a criminal trial has the 5th Amendment right to not testify against themself, meaning that they cannot be called to the stand as a witness. However, in a civil trial, anyone (including the defendant) can be called to the stand to be asked questions (although they can still invoke the 5th Amendment right and opt not to answer). Overall, because the punishments are much harsher for criminal trials (the loss of civil liberties/imprisonment) the rules tend to be much stricter and there is much less leeway compared to civil trials.
Finally, it is also important to note a difference in the words that are used to describe someone who is responsible for a crime or action, where in a criminal case someone is guilty while in a civil case someone is liable.
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Sources:
Brian Duignan & The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, What Is the Difference Between Criminal Law and Civil Law?, Britannica (June 8, 2016), https://www.britannica.com/story/what-is-the-difference-between-criminal-law-and-civil-law.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer nor do I claim to be a lawyer. This article/website is purely for educational purposes only. The information presented on this website does not (and does not claim to) constitute legal advice or representation of a licensed attorney.
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