What’s the difference between civil and criminal court cases?

 Criminal laws are the rules that apply when someone commits a crime such as assault, murder, robbery and other kinds of crimes. After a person is arrested and charged with a crime that goes to a criminal court.

 

Civil law refers to almost all other disputes and the rules that apply when one person sues another person like a business or agency. This can cover a housing case such as eviction or foreclosure, a family case such as divorce or custody consumer problems such as debt or bankruptcy.

 

Both the Civil and Criminal Court Cases have different powers and the judges can punish you for breaking the law by sending you to jail. Civil court judges can order you to pay money or a fine or make decisions about your family or your home. 

 

What happens in criminal court?

 

In criminal court the government files a case against someone for committing a crime; the person accused of committing the crime is called the defendant. The government must prove that the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt which is very high standard. Top Criminal QC says that if the defendant is found guilty then they may go to jail or prison. 

 

If you cannot afford a lawyer

 

If you have been accused of a crime that may lead to jail time the judge should assign a government-paid lawyer called a public defender or legal aid lawyer. To represent you in court when you don’t have any legal immigration status these public defender will do their best.  

 

To get a public defender you need to tell the judge that you cannot afford to hire a lawyer, each court has different rules for how low your income must be to qualify for a defender. Civil and Criminal Court Cases can be easily handled by them and the judge may ask you to fill out a form listing what you own and how much you can earn.  

 

You also need to provide copies of your pay stubs to prove how much you earn if there is no public defender near your area. Then the judge can assign another lawyer to represent you for free. You can ask your public defender to check with a qualified immigration lawyer about how a plea bargain in your criminal case may affect your immigration status.

 

A Top Criminal QC says that a qualified immigration lawyer may be able to suggest a plea bargain arrangement that won’t result in deportation.

 

When you are a crime victim then?

 

If you are a crime victim then you do not need a lawyer in criminal court. Only a lawyer for the government can file a case in criminal court. The lawyer for the government is called the prosecutor, district attorney or state attorney.

 

Now in Civil and Criminal Court Cases let’s have a talk on what happens in civil court.

 

In civil court, one person sues against another person because of a dispute or a problem between them. In these cases if someone loses the case then they are ordered to pay the money to the other side or the return property and are not sent to jail just for losing the case. These cases can be about money and debts, property, housing or marriage and children.

 

Connect with us!

 

For taking the best advice in criminal and court cases you must connect with the Top Criminal QC. With this, you will also get many benefits and knowledge about the various law cases.