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Civil Law
Civil law is a branch of law that governs the rights, duties, and legal relationships between private individuals or entities, such as companies. It primarily deals with non-criminal disputes, including matters like personal injury, contracts, property, inheritance, family law, and other private legal issues.
Civil law differs from criminal law, which involves offenses against the state and can result in penalties like imprisonment. Instead, civil law focuses on resolving conflicts between private parties, often through compensation or specific performance rather than punishment.
There are two related meanings of civil law:
Aspect | Description |
---|---|
Civil law as a legal area | Regulates non-criminal rights and duties among persons and entities, covering family law, contracts, torts, trusts, property, and inheritance. |
Civil law as a legal system | A codified legal system based on Roman law traditions, prevalent in about 60% of the world, emphasizing written codes over judicial precedent. Judges apply the law based on these codes rather than case law. |
Civil law systems are characterized by comprehensive, organized, and adaptable codes that promote cooperation, order, and predictability in legal relations. These codes often avoid excessive detail, allowing flexibility to adapt to societal changes.
In summary, civil law governs private legal relationships and disputes, distinct from criminal law, and can also refer to a legal tradition based on codified statutes derived from Roman law.