Law Stack Exchange
Law Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [civil-law]

For questions relating to non-criminal legal branch of [common-law] legal systems. Not to be confused with [civil-legal-system], relating to civilian or Roman law.

669 questions
77
votes
6 answers

Why is stealing from an employer a criminal act when stealing from an employee is a civil act?

Here is the full question with all the context and details: In the majority of cases in the U.S. about theft at a workplace, why is the matter usually tried in a criminal court when the employer is stolen from, yet is tried in a civil court when…
Display name
  • 743
  • 1
  • 5
  • 7
46
votes
2 answers

Can I sue a restaurant for serving me meat in vegetarian dish?

I am a vegetarian for religious reasons. I was at Chipotle on Saturday and ordered a sofritas rice bowl which is "vegan approved". To my surprise, I found a chunk of chicken in my bowl when I was halfway through eating it. Made me feel sick to the…
user559788
  • 907
  • 1
  • 7
  • 9
38
votes
3 answers

Is it a real legal principle that any ambiguity in a contract is interpreted to the benefit of the side that did not write the contract?

I have heard that there is a legal principle where any ambiguity in the contract is interpreted to the benefit of the side that did not draw up or suggest the contract text. This was presented to me somewhat anecdotally, but sounded reasonable - so…
i_prob_should_know_this
  • 557
  • 4
  • 5
30
votes
2 answers

Why is Trump's alleged fraud in New York not prosecuted as a criminal offense?

The New York Attorney General has filed a civil "complaint" against Donald Trump as well as some family members and companies. The allegations are centering around fraud by inflating property values in financial statements provided to banks and…
Peter - Reinstate Monica
  • 7,460
  • 4
  • 32
  • 59
28
votes
2 answers

What are some possible law suits or civil actions the Las Vegas shooting victims could take?

I assume that many, if not all of the businesses, corporations and individuals who were operating and supplying services at the time of the Las Vegas Strip shootings (Wikipedia) - such as hotels, concert promoters, etc. - to guests and concert…
BlueDogRanch
  • 19,184
  • 5
  • 37
  • 62
26
votes
4 answers

I am being threatened for defamation for sharing an article about an alleged scammer which was published in local news site

There is an alleged scammer in my community. An article about him was published by our local news site. As I have a lot of contacts, I shared the article to all my contacts and it became viral. He is now threatening to sue me for defamation. He is…
user1034912
  • 1,529
  • 1
  • 14
  • 20
25
votes
7 answers

Peanut butter - may contain peanuts

Some products have disclaimers that serve no apparent purpose or which are obviously redundant. For example, a peanut butter jar that lists the ingredients as peanuts, and then provides a warning right under it which says may contain peanuts.* If a…
forest
  • 988
  • 1
  • 11
  • 24
25
votes
4 answers

Can a person purposely provoke someone to hit him and then report a crime?

Say someone purposely provokes another person by insulting him, knowing that this person is easily provoked. The provoked person then hits him. Can the person then report a crime or even file a civil lawsuit on his assaulter, all in the aim of…
user1034912
  • 1,529
  • 1
  • 14
  • 20
25
votes
3 answers

Is there a cause of action for intentionally destroying a sand castle someone else has built on a public beach?

Person A went to a public beach early in the morning and spent 8 hours building a magnificent castle from sand. A had to dig out lots of sand, and overall it was really physically exhausting. The overall effect was wonderful though, the castle was…
Prolog
  • 353
  • 2
  • 7
24
votes
1 answer

What does this fuzzy court clerk stamp say? It's from a very old case in 1995 in the state of Washington

At first I thought it says "MAILED" but that doesn't seem to work...or does it? If you're familiar with court clerk stamps perhaps you can give advice as to what this is? Thank you.
QZ23
  • 275
  • 2
  • 6
24
votes
2 answers

What would happen if Protagoras v Euathlus were heard in court today?

So, I was browsing Wikipedia today, and I came across this article, detailing a lawsuit in Ancient Greece. Basically, what had occurred was that a man, Protagoras, had entered into a contract with another, Euathlus, to provide him with training in…
nick012000
  • 2,145
  • 14
  • 25
22
votes
7 answers

When does silence imply consent?

Does the saying qui tacet consentire videtur (silence implies consent) carry any weight in civil litigation? For example, suppose that Alice emails Bob, "When I began work we agreed that the rate was $100/hour." Another email from Alice to Bob…
feetwet
  • 22,409
  • 13
  • 92
  • 189
21
votes
7 answers

Why doesn't law take into account probability?

My question is based on my layman understanding, I'm not in law When I think of "[damages]"* I think of "what is the expected liability from an interaction," as opposed to "what is the real damage of an interaction." For example, let's say you get…
Bastion Banner
  • 335
  • 2
  • 4
19
votes
3 answers

Can someone explain the thinking behind the libel (?) case between Trump and Carroll for a non-US audience?

As far as I understand the situation between Donald Trump and EJ Carroll she has, very publicly, accused him of rape but there is no conviction or anything else "supporting" that accusation (e.g., a police investigation because a crime likely has…
d-b
  • 741
  • 5
  • 14
19
votes
4 answers

Is there criminal or civil liability for sabotaging or lying about the use of contraception, which then results in a pregnancy?

Alice and Bob, both unmarried adults, engage in consensual intercourse. Alice lies to Bob about her use of contraception or sabotages Bob's use of contraception, and as a result, Alice becomes pregnant. Alternatively, Bob and Alice, both unmarried…
Ron Trunk
  • 1,620
  • 8
  • 21
1
2 3
…
44 45