Civil law

Civil law has at least three meanings. It may connote an entire legal system,

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or either of two different bodies of law within a legal system:

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• a legal system (by contrast to the Common law system)
• the set of rules governing relations between persons (either humans or legal personalities such as corporations); here the contrast is public law, especially criminal law;
• Secular law, as opposed to canon law or natural law.
• the ius civile or the ancient law of Rome, as opposed to the ius gentium or the law of nations, the latter being applicable to foreigners
 
Civil law: As opposed to criminal law ►