DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CIVIL LAW AND CRIMINAL LAW: PHILOSOPHY OF LAW

 

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CIVIL LAW AND CRIMINAL LAW: PHILOSOPHY OF LAW

Civil law/ Criminal law

Question:

  What is the difference Between Civil and Criminal law Explain?

(1) INTRODUCTION

Civil law and criminal law are two broad and separate entities of law with separate sets of laws and punishments.

Examples of criminal law include cases of burglary, assault, battery and cases of murder. Civil law applies to cases of negligence or malpractice, for example.

 

In civil law, a case commences when a complaint is filed by a party, which may be an individual, an organization, a company or a corporation, against another party. The party complaining is called the plaintiff and the party responding is called the defendant and the process is called litigation. In civil litigation, the plaintiff is asking the court to order the defendant to remedy a wrong, often in the form of monetary compensation to the plaintiff. In contrast, in criminal law, the case is filed by the government, usually referred to as the State and represented by a prosecutor, against a defendant. An individual can never file criminal charges against another person: an individual may report a crime, but only the government can file criminal charges in court. Crimes are activities punishable by the government and are divided into two broad classes of seriousness: felonies having a possible sentence of more than one year incarceration and misdemeanors having a possible sentence of one year or less incarceration. Cases:

 (2) Definitions

Criminal laws at the local, state and federal level define criminal activities and establish legal punishments for those convicted of crimes like arson, assault and theft. Criminal law cases are only conducted through the criminal court system.

In contrast, civil laws deal with the private rights of individuals. Civil laws are applied when an individual has had his or her rights violated or when individuals have disputes with other individuals or organizations. Some matters of civil law are handled outside a court of law, such as through a third-party mediator. Alternatively, lawsuits may be resolved through a non-criminal trial.

 

  Punishment

One of the notable differences between civil law and criminal law is the punishment. In case of criminal law a person found guilty is punished by incarceration in a prison, a fine, or in some occasion's death penalty. Whereas, in case of civil law the losing party has to reimburse the plaintiff, the amount of loss which is determined by the judge and is called punitive damage. A criminal litigation is more serious than civil litigation in that criminal defendants have more rights and protections than a civil defendant.

(1) Burdens of proof

In case of criminal law, the burden of proof lies with the government in order to prove that the defendant is guilty. On the other hand, in case of civil law the burden of proof first lies with the plaintiff and then with the defendant to refute the evidence provided by the plaintiffs. In case of civil litigation if the judge or jury believes that there are more than 50% of the evidence favoring the plaintiffs, then plaintiffs win, which is very low as compared to 99% proof for criminal law. In case of criminal law, defendant is not declared guilty unless there are approximately more than 99% proofs against him.

(2) How the system works

One can say that criminal law deals with looking after public interests. It involves punishing and rehabilitating offenders, and protecting the society. The police and prosecutor are hired by the government to put the criminal law into effect. Public funds are used to pay for these services. If suppose you are the victim of the crime, you report it to the police and then it is their duty to investigate the matter and find the suspect. In most cases, if a charge has been properly presented and if there is evidence supporting it, the Government, not the person who complains of the incident, prosecutes it in the courts. This is called a system of public prosecutions. On the other hand, civil law is about private disputes between individuals or between an individual and an organization or between organizations. Civil law deals with the harm, loss, or injury to one party or the other. A defendant in a civil case is found liable or not liable for damages, while in a criminal case defendant may be found guilty or not.

(3) Definition

Civil law deals with the disputes between individuals or organizations or between the two in which compensation is awarded to the victim. Criminal law is the body of law that deals with crime and the legal punishment of criminal offences.

(4) Burden of proof

Preponderance of evidence the burden of proof falls on the plaintiff one must produce evidence beyond the balance of probabilities. In criminal law burden of proof is always on the state or government.

(5) Examples

In civil law landlord tenant disputes divorce proceedings child custody proceedings property disputes personal injury etc. In criminal law theft assault robbery trafficking in controlled substances murder etc.

(6) Type of punishment

Civil litigation usually involves some type of compensation for injuries or damages as well as deposition of property and other disputes. In criminal law a guilty defendant is punished by incarceration and or fines or in exceptional cases the death penalty. Crimes are divided into two broad classes’ felonies and misdemeanor.

(7) Case filed by

Private party in civil cases, and in criminal cases the government or state.

(8) Appeal

In civil cases appeal may be fired by other party and in criminal cases appeal will be filed by the defendant.

(11) Damages

Often the plaintiff sues the defendant for money rather than a different, performance-oriented remedy. In a civil litigation matter, any money the court awards to the plaintiff is called damages. Several kinds of damages may be appropriate. The plaintiff can sue for compensatory damages, which compensate for injuries, costs, which repay the lawsuit expenses, and in some cases, punitive damages. Punitive damages, also referred to as exemplary damages, are not designed to compensate the plaintiff but instead focus on punishing the defendant for causing the injury.

(12) Goal of a Criminal Prosecution

Another substantial difference between civil litigation and criminal prosecution is the goal. Recall that the goal of civil litigation is to compensate the plaintiff for injuries. In contrast, the goal of a criminal prosecution is to punish the defendant.

(13) RIGHTS OF INDIVIDUALS

The objective of Civil Law is to protect the rights of an individual or organization. It needs to ensure the wrongs done to be rectified against the sufferer. Criminal law punishes the convicts, protects the citizens and ensures law and order in the land.