In their technical and narrow sense, the words civil law describe the law that refers to people, things and the relationships that develop between them, excluding not only criminal law but also commercial law, labor law, etc. Civil law is a legal system rooted in the Roman Empire and was codified and disseminated comprehensively starting in the 19th century, especially with the Napoleonic Code of France (180) and the Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch (1900) of Germany. Unlike common law systems, which rely heavily on judicial precedent, civil law systems are characterized by being based on legal codes that function as the primary source of law. Today, civil law is the most common legal system in the world and is practiced in some 150 countries.
In general, civil law judgments are inquisitorial rather than contradictory. In an inquisitorial trial, judges play an important role, overseeing and shaping every part of the proceeding. Civil law is a rules-based system, meaning that judges don't refer to previous judgments to guide their decisions. Civil law is the legal branch that covers private rights, instead of crimes.
If your neighbor decides to sue you because your dog barks constantly, it's a matter of civil law. Civil law refers to almost all other disputes. These are the rules that apply when a person sues another person, a company or agency. This can include a housing case, such as eviction or foreclosure, a family case, such as divorce or custody, consumer problems, such as debt or bankruptcy, or when someone files a lawsuit for money due to property or personal damage.
All of these cases go to a civil court. Civil law, the law of continental Europe, is based on a mixture of Roman, Germanic, ecclesiastical, feudal, commercial and customary law. European civil law has been adopted in much of Latin America, as well as in parts of Asia and Africa, and must be distinguished from the customary law of Anglo-American countries. To a lesser extent, other states that were formerly part of the Spanish Empire, such as Texas and California, have also preserved aspects of Spanish civil law in their legal system, for example, community property.
However, over time, even local law came to be interpreted and evaluated primarily on the basis of Roman law, since it was a kind of common European legal tradition and, therefore, influenced the main source of law. It's also important to note that in a civil law jurisdiction, unless the contract specifies that the parties have agreed to arbitration, administrative courts will enforce the contract. However, the German Civil Code (Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch für das Deutsche Reich) was not completed until 1896 and did not take effect until January. In current practice, there are more and more precedents in civil law case law and they are usually seen in the highest courts in many countries. Countries that use customary law use non-professional juries, that is, groups of people without any specific experience, to determine guilt or innocence.
When Swiss legislation was codified between 1907 and 1912, it became the model for the Turkish codification of 1926 and strongly influenced the codification of China, which is still in force in Taiwan. There are two main types of legal systems in the world, and most countries adopt characteristics of one or the other in their own legal systems, customary law and civil law. In addition, it formed the basis of the law of the Republic of China, which is still in force in Taiwan. The political ideals of that time were expressed in the concepts of democracy, protection of property and the rule of law. In the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation, the reception of Roman law was facilitated because its emperors appreciated the idea of being the direct successors of the Roman Caesars; Roman law, enshrined in the Code of Justinian (Corpus Juris Civilis) by Emperor Justinian I between 527 and 565, could be considered to be still in force simply because it was imperial law.
In civil, criminal and commercial courts, there is little room for the adoption of laws issued by judges, although in practice judges tend to follow previous judicial decisions; constitutional and administrative courts can overturn laws and regulations and their decisions in such cases are binding on everyone. For example, the civil law systems of the Nordic countries over time have deviated considerably from their classical Roman and German models. Concessions and Affermage have a defined technical meaning and structure that may not be understood or applied in a common law country. Create comprehensive legal documents to protect your rights to housing, family law, debt collection and many other types of issues, for free.
