6.12 - Civil Law

​Civil Law
6.12

By John Christiansen

Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveils the first iPhone

​​2007

Jean-Pierre Blanchard becomes the first person in the United States to fly a balloon

1793

​Today in History | Jan 9th

Learners can:

• identify types of civil law

• evaluate whether the plaintiff in a civil case meets the burden of proof

• create a fictional civil case

Vocabulary: class-action lawsuit, intellectual property, lawsuit, out-of-court settlement, tort

Overview

Not all court cases involve people on trial for allegedly committing a crime.

And not all court cases result in monumental decisions that affect people throughout the country

Imagine someone hitting a baseball through your window.

Essential Question:

What kinds of cases occur in civil law, and how are the cases settled?

​

​Engage

Poll

If the situations below happened to you, how likely would you be to pursue legal action?

• A shelf in a store falls on you and injures you.

• You discover someone used your music or art in an online video without your permission.

• Someone hits a baseball through your home's window.

• An appliance manufacturer refuses to repair a faulty refrigerator.

Civil cases do not involve the government as a party to the case; the only role that government plays is as the finder-of-fact in the form of the judge who will hear the arguments of both sides and reach a decision according to the law.

A lawsuit is a legal claim that a party brings to court to solve a legal dispute. Examples:
- contracts
- property laws
- family law
- tort

​Types of Civil Law

A contract is a legally binding agreement.

Contracts can be verbal or written.

For example, in job contracts, an employee agrees to do certain types of work and the employer agrees to provide certain payments and possibly other benefits like insurance.

If either party believes the contract has been violated, the party may file a lawsuit.

​Contracts

Property law involves disputes over who owns something.

This could be physical property, such as land. Or, intellectual property, or ownership of an idea or creative work that an individual holds a patent or copyright for.

For example, if one music artist believes another artist copied part of a song, they could sue for copyright infringement
- Happy Birthday Song
- Ice Ice Baby and Under Pressure

Property Law

Legal disputes within a family are another type of civil law. Cases may relate to the end of a marriage, arrangements for how unmarried parents share custody of a child, or which family member owns certain property.

Family Law

Tort is a non-criminal behavior that causes harm to another person and may result in a civil law case.

It may be intentional or be result of negligence or recklessness

For example, a tort case could involve suing:
- a reckless driver for causing an accident.
- a dog owner for their dog biting someone
- an employer for unsafe working conditions

A tort can also be in addition to a criminal case
- a driver could be charger criminally for reckless driving and sued civilly for property damage

Tort

Match

Match the example to the type of civil law.

• 
  

  An employee sues their employer for not accurately counting the employee's work hours and underpaying the employee.

• A comedian sues another comedian for copying their jokes.

• Two adult siblings disagree about who gets ownership of their deceased parent's house.

• 
  

  A shelf in a store falls on a child and causes a concussion. The child's parents sue the store.

contract

property law

family law

tort

• contract

• property law

• family law

• tort

In a civil case, the plaintiff is the party accusing another party of causing harm or injustice. They hope that the court will force compensation from the defendant.

Most lawsuits involve one plaintiff filing a lawsuit due to individual harm against the plaintiff. However, some lawsuits may be class-action lawsuits, where one plaintiff or a group of plaintiffs file a lawsuit due to harm against a larger group, or class.

An example of a class-action lawsuit is Brown v. Board of Education, in which Oliver Brown was the plaintiff in a case involving multiple children who were denied access to Whites-only schools.

Plaintiff, Defendant, and Attorneys

Like in criminal cases, the defendant in a civil case is the accused party. They hope to convince the court of no wrong doing or to minimize compensation

Both sides in civil cases often have attorneys. Remember that an attorney is a legal expert who argues on behalf of a client and speaks for the client in court. Laws can be complex and confusing, and attorneys use their expertise to help their clients make a strong case.

​Plaintiff, Defendant, and Attorneys

Multiple Choice

Which role is part of a criminal court case, but not part of a civil court case?

• attorney

• 
  defendant

• 
  prosecutor

• plaintiff

In criminal cases, the prosecutor's burden is to prove the defendant is “guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.”

In civil cases, the burden of proof is “a preponderance of evidence.” This means that something is more likely than unlikely.

Burden of Proof in Civil Cases

​If it seems unlikely that the defendant is guilty, the burden of proof has not been met.

If it seems equally likely that the defendant is guilty or not guilty, the burden of proof has not been met.

If the court is more than 50 percent certain that the defendant is guilty, the burden of proof has been met. The defendant does not need to be proven "guilty beyond a reasonable doubt." As long as the defendant appears more likely guilty than not guilty, the defendant is found guilty.

​Scenario A

Toppley and his children are shopping at the superstore Major Value. A store shelf falls on one of the children and causes a concussion. Toppley sues Major Value, seeking monetary compensation. Toppley is the plaintiff, and Major Value is the defendant.

In court, Major Value presents video surveillance footage of Toppley's child climbing on the shelf, causing it to fall. Toppley claims the shelf was not secure, and Major Value is at fault. The jury decides that Toppley's child is just as responsible for the incident as Major Value is. The burden of proof has not been met, and Major Value does not need to compensate Toppley.

​Scenario B

Major Value presents the surveillance footage of Toppley's child climbing the shelf. Toppley claims the shelf was not secure. Toppley also identifies the model of the shelf and presents the user manual, which has a warning that the shelf should be attached to a wall or floor to prevent it from falling. Major Value claims the shelf was bolted to the floor. Toppley points out that in the surveillance footage, the shelf appears to have tipped easily, and no holes from bolts are visible in the floor after the shelf tips.

The jury decides that Major Value is more likely at fault than Toppley's child is. The burden of proof has been met, and Major Value must pay compensation to Toppley.

Multiple Select

In which cases would the court hold the defendant responsible for alleged damage?

• The jury is certain that the plaintiff's claims are false or unreasonable, and the defendant did not cause damage.

• The jury thinks it is equally likely that the defendant is responsible or not responsible for the damage.

• The jury thinks it seems likely, though not certain, that the defendant is responsible for the damage.

• The jury is certain that the defendant caused the damage.

AmGov_U6_Civil_CivilLaw_Interactive_Ryco | Preview

Civil Case Burden of Proof Exercise

Multiple Select

Do you think XYZ Appliances is at fault?

• YES SIR

• NO SHOT

When someone files a civil legal action, it does not immediately go to court. Over 90 percent of civil cases end with an out-of-court settlement, an arrangement the two parties agree to outside of court. Under Pressure and Ice Ice Baby

Out-of-court settlements are usually a more attractive option than filing a lawsuit and going to court.

Settling out of court saves both parties a lot of time and money

Out-of-Court Settlement

Multiple Select

Why do many people prefer to settle out of court rather than file a lawsuit and bring a dispute to court?

• to minimize how much the dispute interrupts their lives

• 
  to reduce the legal fees they need to pay

• 
  to reach a final resolution faster

• 
  to avoid the risk of a verdict they do not want

In this lesson, you answered the Essential Question:

What kinds of cases occur in civil law, and how are the cases settled?

You learned:

• Civil law may involve contracts, property, family, or tort.

• Plaintiffs, defendants, and attorneys act in civil cases.

• The burden of proof in a civil case is “a preponderance of evidence.”

• Most cases are settled out of court.

In an upcoming lesson, you will learn about the process of law in criminal and civil cases.

Summary