What is civil law and how does it work?

Civil law is that area of law that deals with disputes between individuals or organizations. There are countless ways in which civil law can solve the disputes, which arise in society. One example is when a car crash victim files a claim for damages against the at fault driver for injuries sustained in a wreck. Another example of civil law is a contract dispute. Every case is considered civil unless a crime has allegedly been committed and the accused faces punishment being prison, probation and/or fine. Unlike criminal offenses in which a federal or local prosecutor for the government prosecutes a person for a crime; civil law utilizes private attorneys. Criminal law is all about guilt or innocence; while civil cases usually result in compensation to the winning party.

Civil law has developed in much the same way as criminal law, through a mixture statute and precedent, which evolved through the rulings in earlier cases.

One crucial difference between civil and criminal law is that the “burden of proof” is less in a civil case in as much as the prevailing party must merely tip the “scale of justice” in his favor in order to prevail, while a criminal case must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. Some civil legal matters can be taken on a contingency basis, which means no fee unless you win, while others must be based upon an hourly rate I would be happy to evaluate your civil case.