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Difference between revisions of "Family Violence"
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Two of the most important branches of the law are ''civil law'' and ''criminal law''; there are plenty of others, like constitutional law and administrative law, but these are two of the big ones. | Two of the most important branches of the law are ''civil law'' and ''criminal law''; there are plenty of others, like constitutional law and administrative law, but these are two of the big ones. | ||
''Tort law'' is a branch of civil law, as is family law. Other branches of civil law include contract law, property law and the law on negligence. | ''Tort law'' is a branch of civil law, as is family law. Other branches of civil law include contract law, property law, and the law on negligence. | ||
Criminal law mostly deals with regulatory legislation, laws created by the government | Criminal law mostly deals with regulatory legislation, laws created by the government that list the things we're not supposed to do and the range of potential penalties for doing those things. Legislation that falls under this heading includes the ''[http://canlii.ca/t/7vf2 Criminal Code]'', the ''[http://canlii.ca/t/7vtc Controlled Drugs and Substances Act]'' and the ''[http://canlii.ca/t/7vx2 Youth Criminal Justice Act]''. | ||
Criminal law deals with a person's offences against the rules of the state. | Criminal law deals with a person's offences against the rules of the state. | ||
Tort law, on the other hand, deals with a person's offences against other people, such as personal injuries, motor vehicle accidents, negligence, assault and battery, trespass and so forth | Tort law, on the other hand, deals with a person's offences against other people, such as personal injuries, motor vehicle accidents, negligence, assault and battery, trespass, and so forth. | ||
That explanation of the difference between tort law and criminal law was a bit technical. Another way of looking at it through the example of O.J. Simpson. If you recall, O.J. was tried twice for the same basic issue. First, he was criminally tried for an alleged murder. Second, the family of the victim sued him in civil court for the alleged wrongful death of the victim or something to that effect. | The legal definition of a tort is "a breach of a duty owed by someone to someone else which gives rise to a cause of action," like a duty not to hit someone, a duty to drive carefully, or a duty not to dig a hole in your lawn that someone might fall into. Generally speaking, these sort of civil offences aren't set out in laws the way that the rules against robbery or rape are set out in ''Criminal Code''; they're creatures of the common law, the law that the courts have created. | ||
That explanation of the difference between tort law and criminal law was a bit technical. Another way of looking at it is through the example of O.J. Simpson. If you recall, O.J. was tried twice for the same basic issue. First, he was criminally tried for an alleged murder. Second, the family of the victim sued him in civil court for the alleged wrongful death of the victim or something to that effect. | |||
Essentially, the criminal trial was because of O.J.'s alleged crime of killing someone contrary to the the criminal law (his alleged crime against the state) and the civil trial was because of his alleged tort offence against the family of the victim (his wrong against the family). The important point here is that the one thing O.J. was alleged to have done gave rise to both the criminal charges and the family's tort claim: two separate court proceedings, one in criminal court and one in civil court. If you are punched by someone, for example, that person's conduct may result in both: | Essentially, the criminal trial was because of O.J.'s alleged crime of killing someone contrary to the the criminal law (his alleged crime against the state) and the civil trial was because of his alleged tort offence against the family of the victim (his wrong against the family). The important point here is that the one thing O.J. was alleged to have done gave rise to both the criminal charges and the family's tort claim: two separate court proceedings, one in criminal court and one in civil court. If you are punched by someone, for example, that person's conduct may result in both: | ||